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Hello,

As we await all of the votes in this 2020 presidential election to be counted, exactly what the political climate of the future will look like is still unclear. But our work does not stop. And no matter the results, we will remain focused on protecting and caring for the Eastern Sierra. Thank you for your continued support of our work.

In this issue of the Juniper you will find a recap of the "Stand for the Land" rally to protect Conglomerate Mesa. Several FOI Staff and Board were there and proudly stood with local environmental and indigenous rights activists to show our support. You will also find a recap of recent work done in Death Valley National Park, and trash picked up during the Eastside Facelift. Lastly, you have the opportunity to attend a virtual Open House hosted by Premium Energy, the company proposing a potentially damaging pumped storage project in Owens Valley. I hope you enjoy this month's issue of the Juniper.

Sincerely,

Kyle Hamada
Communications Director

Stand for the Land!
A Rally to Save Conglomerate Mesa

On October 25th, about 100 environmental and indigenous rights activists peacefully occupied space in Lone Pine to stand in protest of K2 Gold and Mojave Precious Metal’s mining at Conglomerate Mesa. We want to extend a sincere thank you to the indigenous leaders, activists, and citizens who showed up for the Stand for the Land event! And a big thank you to Payahuunadu Alliance, Indigenous Women Hike, INYO 350, South County Advocates, and Sierra Club Range of Light Group for leading the organizing efforts. With about 100 people in attendance, we stood together, masked and distanced, to send a strong message that Conglomerate Mesa is worth more than gold. It deserves our protection. However, this is not the end! There is more work to be done. 

K2 Gold and Mojave Precious Metals are preparing for their next phase of exploratory drilling and destructive road construction at Conglomerate Mesa. In the coming months, we must be prepared for a BLM public comment period on brand new road construction at Conglomerate Mesa and 120 drill holes. We will use this comment period as another opportunity to demonstrate our strong and immense opposition to the “Mojave Project.” Friends of the Inyo and our partners will alert everyone the moment a public comment opportunity arises. In the meantime, here is how you can take action!

Effacing Vehicle Tracks in Death Valley National Park

When a vehicle drives off a designated road in Death Valley National Park, it scars the landscape and serves as an implicit invitation to others to join in on the destructive driving. This is why Friends of the Inyo joined Death Valley National Park and Great Basin Institute staff to figure out the best ways to “efface” such tracks. This fall, we got the green light from our National Park Service (NPS) partners to do eight weeks of stewardship in the park, doing effacement to restore the playas folks have driven across to a natural state. Read more about our work in DVNP in Alex's blog post. 

Haiwee Pumped Storage Project Virtual "Open House" 

The Haiwee Pumped Storage proposal has significant conflicts with existing land use management designations and adverse impacts to species as well as cultural and recreational resources. Premium Energy is hosting a virtual "open house" to discuss details of the project. You can register to attend the meeting and learn for yourself what Premium Energy is saying about this project. 

"The proposed Haiwee Pumped Storage Project would be located 10 miles south of Olancha in Inyo County, CA. The project concept envisions the construction of a pumped-storage power facility with capacity of 1,200 MW.

Join us, as we discuss the overview of the project and its main features."

Eastside Facelift: Successful Events at Lake Sabrina and Gull Lake

Friends of the Inyo was proud to participate in the Eastside Facelift, a collaboration focused on picking up litter and cleaning public lands throughout the Eastern Sierra. FOI hosted a clean up in the Lake Sabrina area, providing trash-grabbers and trash bags, and helped host a clean up at Gull Lake in partnership with the June Lake Trails Committee. 

Dozens of volunteers periodically stopped through to pick up trash and clean up some of our favorite places. Thank you to all of the partners and organizers of the Eastside Facelift and to the volunteers who made this day a success!

Reminder: New Office Location

I'd like to remind you that we have moved from our previous location on Barlow Lane to a new downtown office on West Line Street. Please also take a moment to update our address in your contact records so that all donations and correspondence will go to the right address. 

Friends of the Inyo
621 W. Line St., Suite 201
Bishop, CA 93514

Want to support Friends of the Inyo? Consider making a donation online today!

Thank you for your generous support

Friends of the Inyo appreciates the following organizations and local businesses for their generous sponsorship of our programs: