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Don’t Bomb Big Sur |
We Win A Key Battle
(3/22/2001) |
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Jet Fighter Bomber Range Proposed for Big Sur • San Antonio Valley
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Add Your Voice To The Online Wall of Conscience Submit Your Opinion |
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See
Dark Wings Over Big Sur – Coastal
Conservancy quarterly
magazine online |
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“This ill-conceived proposal has targeted the nucleus of ecosystem integrity for our entire region, including affected areas on both coastal and interior sides of the Coast Ranges, as well as our precious marine environment in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.“ |
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San Antonio Valley in the Morning looking south east from Big Sur Ventana Wilderness
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We strongly feel the area should receive more
attention for its very special natural history,
geological, biological and cultural attributes. San
Antonio Valley is a very rare place. It has a
lot to offer us. It is a relatively pristine classic
coastal mountain valley. The botany and geology in the
valley are extraordinary, and not to be found together
like this in any other place. Stony Creek, Stony Valley
in San Antonio Valley, and the immediate national forest
and wilderness areas, comprise the greatest mass of the
unique natural history of California. No place in the
hemisphere has such a profound profusion of
biodiversity. More
than 55% of all the native plants of California are here
– and many exist only here. There is no other place in
California that comes close to the incredible degree of
botanical variety that has its home in San Antonio Valley
and the adjoining forest and mountains. Further, it is a
geological wonder. In this valley and the Santa Lucias
that surround it, there is one of the most amazing
collections of plates and blocks found anywhere on the
continent. The San Antonio Valley is the center piece of
this geological and biological splendor. The early
Spaniards called it La Joya de la Sierra Santa Lucia –
the Jewel of the Santa Lucia Mountains. It is a rare and
beautiful jewel. The
botanical treasures here are legion. Many of the foremost
examples of California’s remarkable trees were discovered
here, and their discoverers have made the area legendary
in botanical science circles around the world. Currently
there are university study projects underway in the area
that are already returning surprising findings -not the
least of which is the quantity of previously unknown
plants. There has been great anticipation among many to
access these natural treasures with the transition of
military to park. The
cultural history of this area is extraordinary as well.
The Salinan Nation has the heart of its homeland in the
Stony Valley, and archeological treasures abound in the
immediate area. Their stewardship of the Valley traces
back 10,000 years. The
descendants are purposefully recovering their culture at
this moment. They were thought to be extinct by
anthropologists, for so thorough was Spanish then
American cultural imposition. But, they have made a great
deal of progress in the recovery of their language and
history, and are now embarking on a large project to
establish a cultural landscape that will tell of their
history in San Antonio Valley. The focus of their vision
is the Stony Creek area, as it represent the historical
center of their population. Several important
institutions are expected to support their project.
Because
it was protected as a hunting preserve by Hearst, and as
a military reservation, San Antonio is virtually intact
as a predevelopment California coastal mountain valley.
The botanical and cultural treasures there make the
Valley a rich place to understand and appreciate the real
uniqueness of California. There has been damage to Valley
by cattle grazing, and the military vehicle training, but
it is essentially an integral coastal valley of which
there are no others. It has been our hope that the
wondrous San Antonio Valley would become a place of
learning, so we are very earnest in wanting to
participate in the proceedings concerning the Naval
proposal. The area is
rich with archaeological heritage of the peaceful Salinan
Nation. Pelican Network pages about the
area that will be impacted by a Naval Air Bomb Training
Site in San Antonio Valley: Or, select another destination
in Pelican Network from the directory below.
It
just came to our attention that you are proceeding with a
plan to construct a jet fighter bombing range in Stony
Valley of San Antonio Valley. We had hoped the ongoing
decrease in military training activity at Fort Hunter
Liggett would allow this unique area to become more
accessible for learning its extraordinary natural and
cultural historical character.
Colonies of Elephant Seals at Piedras Blancas will be
under the flight path of Navy jet fighter bombers
Once thought to be on the brink of extinction, Condors
are now successfully inhabitating their historical
habitat in the Santa Lucia coastal range.
Big Sur coast near Nacimiento Road
out of San Antonio Valley
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DeCinzo cartoon.1 |
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Navy show in King City |
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SJ Mercury Story – Paul Rogers |
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Ventana Wilderness Alliance |
Monterey Bay
Volunteer Point Sur Historical Park