Bulldozing in Expanded National Monument, Sacred Molok Luyuk
Date: 08/19/2024
State: CA
Issues: Fire, Off Road Vehicles, Wild Lands, Wildlife
Partners: California Native Plant Society, Tuleyome, Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation
Airport Origin : Davis, CA
Mission
These flights were an urgent response to provide the aerial perspective over unnecessary bulldozing in the new expansion of Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
On May 2nd, President Biden expanded two California national monuments, the Berryessa Snow Mountain and the San Gabriel Mountains National Monuments, protecting a total of nearly 120,000 acres of public lands. Molok Luyuk, an area sacred to the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, has long been threatened by development projects, and we are thrilled that it is now protected. Our overflights with Tuleyome and the Tribe have aimed to help stop wind energy projects on sacred lands and protect this critical wildlife corridor.
These flights were to unite stakeholders and examine unnecessary bulldozing in the new expansion, that was done without notifiation of the Molok Luyuk monument management. EcoFlight’s partners at Tuleyome were on a tour with the BLM manager of the national monument when they discovered this large swath of sacred land that had been bulldozed. This was done without prior approval. The bulldozing was three miles from the actual fire boundary and left an unnecessary scar on a critical landscape. Our flight examined this scar and the surrounding landscape to help improve fire management in the future. Areas of great natural value such as the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument require fire management plans to take conservation into account and prevent needless habitat destruction.
Fire mitigation plans must consider the natural and cultural values within the national monument, wilderness, and other undeveloped areas and should establish which minimally impactful tools will be used to fight fires in undeveloped areas. Taking precautionary action and creating fire management plans specific to wild places can reduce the spread of wildfire while preserving the health of this forest ecosystem.
Click for photos from the flight, aerial GoPro footage, and geo-referenced photos (download and open in Google Earth).