NONPROFIT AGENCY SEEKS A.V. LAND PRESERVATION.Byline: CHARLES F. BOSTWICK Staff Writer LANCASTER -- A 9-month-old nonprofit organization Nonprofit Organization An association that is given tax-free status. Donations to a non-profit organization are often tax deductible as well. Notes: Examples of non-profit organizations are charities, hospitals and schools. is working with local government officials to acquire undeveloped Antelope Valley This article is about the Los Angeles County region. For the census-designated place in Wyoming, see Antelope Valley-Crestview, Wyoming. The Antelope Valley desert for preservation. As more and more homes and businesses go up on what had been old farmland or untouched desert, Antelope Valley Conservancy leaders hope to use fees paid by developers and money from other sources to acquire land for preservation in its natural state. ``Habitat preservation is the basis for species preservation. The Antelope Valley has a long history of preserving natural lands,'' said Wendy Reed, the conservancy's executive director. The conservancy fills the local need for an agency that can take care of land acquired through ``mitigation'' fees -- $770 per acre in Lancaster, or more depending on the condition of the land -- paid by developers for building on what had been wildlife habitat, officials said. ``That has been the missing link we've needed,'' Lancaster City Councilman Ron Smith Ron Smith may refer to:
Conservancy leaders are examining what areas are best for preservation, consulting federal and local habitat designation plans and analyzing which areas are viable to keep undeveloped into the future and which would provide corridors for wildlife to travel from spot to spot. Among the first acquisition projects in which the conservancy may be involved is a proposal by Lancaster officials to set aside some 500 acres near the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve is a California wildlife reserve located in the rural westside of the Antelope Valley in northern Los Angeles County. Constitutionally, it is a state park. Its namesake is the state flower, the California Poppy. as a preserve for the burrowing owl bur·row·ing owl n. A small, long-legged owl (Speotyto cunicularia) of American prairies that nests in burrows dug by animals such as prairie dogs or rabbits. , whose numbers and habitat are dwindling dwin·dle v. dwin·dled, dwin·dling, dwin·dles v.intr. To become gradually less until little remains. v.tr. To cause to dwindle. See Synonyms at decrease. in California although it is not designated an endangered species endangered species, any plant or animal species whose ability to survive and reproduce has been jeopardized by human activities. In 1999 the U.S. government, in accordance with the U.S. . Created in August, the conservancy is run by a board that also includes Callyn York, an Antelope Valley College Antelope Valley College is a comprehensive community college located in Lancaster, California, USA. It is operated by the Antelope Valley Community College District, with a primary service area of 1,945 square miles covering portions of Los Angeles and Kern counties. zoology zoology, branch of biology concerned with the study of animal life. From earliest times animals have been vitally important to man; cave art demonstrates the practical and mystical significance animals held for prehistoric man. professor, and Johnny Munger, a Bank of the West information technology security official. About 200 local land trusts exist elsewhere in California, officials said. Smith and other local government officials praised the conservancy Wednesday at a news conference honoring Endangered Species Day at one of the valley's existing preserves, the 102-acre Prime Desert Woodland Preserve that Lancaster created beginning in the 1980s. ``I like the conservancy (approach). They are the quiet people. They spend their money on real things,'' said Larry Grooms, an aide to Assemblywoman Sharon Runner Sharon Runner (born May 17 1954, Los Angeles) is a Californian politician. She has been a member of the California State Assembly since 2002. Runner, a Republican from Antelope Valley represents the 36th district. , R-Lancaster, who said he first worked with habitat conservancies on the central California coast. Besides the Prime Desert Woodland Preserve, which is nearly surrounded by west Lancaster tract homes, the valley has the 1,745-acre state poppy reserve and the 566-acre Ripley Desert Woodland State Park west of there. Los Angeles County also has 2,200 acres in 12 wildflower wildflower Any flowering plant that grows without intentional human aid. Wildflowers are the source of all cultivated garden varieties of flowers. A wildflower growing where it is unwanted is considered a weed. and wildlife preserves scattered from Quail Lake near Gorman to the San Bernardino County line, home to protected desert tortoises and Mohave ground squirrels as well as more than 130 species of birds, including prairie falcons. Most of the county preserves are small -- the largest is 320 acres -- and county officials would like to acquire more land, especially adjoining the preserves or connecting one to another. ``No endangered species does well in a captive environment,'' said Mickey Long, natural areas administrator for the Los Angeles County parks department. While new homes are spreading quickly across the Antelope Valley, the area retains an advantage over other urbanized areas in that it still has large expanses available for acquisition as nature preserves, Reed said. That includes undeveloped land within the built-up sections of Palmdale and Lancaster, she said. ``Hopefully some of these can be within our urban borders and they're not all going to be 50 miles away,'' Reed said. San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. Audobon Society executive officer Jim Moore, among the speakers, said one of his favorite spots to look for birds like the secretive Le Conte's thrasher The Le Conte's Thrasher (Toxostoma lecontei) is a pale bird found in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. It prefers to live in deserts with very little vegetation, where it blends in with the sandy soils. and the ladder-backed woodpecker is the Joshua tree woodlands west of Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale. Covering more than 1,300 acres, the area is bordered by Sierra Highway and 10th Street West and adjoined by new housing tracts and businesses along Avenue O. It is plagued by illegal dumping, which employees from the nearby Lockheed Martin plant last month went out and cleaned up. ``If there ever was a place ripe for protection, it's that area,'' Moore said. chuck.bostwick(at)dailynews.com (661) 267-5742 CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Wendy Reed, head of the Antelope Valley Conservancy, attends a news conference on land acquisition. (2) Lancaster Councilman Ron Smith speaks at the Antelope Valley Conservancy news conference Wednesday on plans to acquire land in the valley for preservation. Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer |
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