Take Action:  Action Alerts | Action Alert Sign Up | Volunteer | Join or Give

The future of local BLM wild lands is being decided now--Please help them!

The Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Ukiah Field Office has begun preparing a management plan for the 300,000 acres (468 square miles) it manages in Napa, Yolo, Solano, Mendocino, Lake, Glenn, and Colusa counties. This management plan will guide the agency's management of everything from mining, to cattle grazing, to off-road vehicle use for the next decade or more. It is therefore essential that people who care about wild places get involved in the development of this plan and make their voices heard.

The Ukiah Field Office of the BLM manages many important biological treasures, including:

• Blue Ridge Proposed Wilderness which features the Blue Ridge Trail. The trail offers an astounding profusion of wildflowers and views as far south as Yosemite and as far north as Mount Shasta.
• Cache Creek Proposed Wilderness which shelters the second largest wintering bald eagle population in California and a large herd of rare tule elk (the world's smallest elk). Cache Creek is popular with whitewater boaters because of its gentle rapids and scenery.
• Cedar Roughs Proposed Wilderness, a haven for the last wild black bear population in Napa County and a paradise of rare plants.
• Black Forest in Lake County with its rare grove of old-growth trees.
• Little Darby Peak in Mendocino County with its charming nature trail.
• West Walker Ridge in Lake County with its abundance of rare plants.
• North Cow Mountain in Lake and Mendocino Counties with its excellent trail system.

To make sure that these wild places are preserved for future generations, please let your voice be heard!

What you can do

By August 31, 2004 (letters must be postmarked by this date and faxes and emails must be received by it), please write to:

Field Manager Rich Burns
BLM, Ukiah Field Office
2550 North State Street
Ukiah, CA 95482
Fax: 707-468-4027
Email: ukiahrmp@ca.blm.gov

In your letter, please express in your own words why BLM lands are important to you. Also, please request that:

• The Cache Creek Wilderness Study Area be enlarged by 10,415 acres.
• The West Walker Ridge area be managed as a roadless area.
• The Blue Ridge area be managed as a roadless area.
• The former Payne Ranch be restored and then managed as a roadless area.
• The Black Forest be designated as an area of critical environmental concern (ACEC) to protect old-growth.
• Part of the Knoxville area be designated an ACEC to protect rare plants.
• Part of the former Stornetta Ranch be designated an ACEC to protect Point Arena mountain beaver habitat and riparian habitat along the Garcia River.