PEER in California

PEER's environmental work is solely directed by the needs of its members. As a consequence, we have the distinct honor of serving resource professionals who daily cast profiles in courage in cubicles across the country.

Find out about California’s whistleblower law

Following are PEER news releases, white papers, surveys and other activities for California:


News Releases for California
November 2, 2009  SECRET CALIFORNIA PARK GIVE-AWAY — Back Door Proposal to Transfer Lands from Tolowa Dunes State Park
October 19, 2009  CALIFORNIA TO SET FIRST HEX CHROMIUM DRINKING WATER LEVEL — Public Health Advocates Urge Adoption of Safe Standard Found by Science Agency
September 30, 2009  MOJAVE OFF-ROAD PLAN STRUCK DOWN IN FEDERAL COURT — BLM Told to Redesign Bush-Era ORV Plan for Mojave Desert Federal Lands
September 23, 2009  STATE ORV PARK VIOLATING CALIFORNIA WATER QUALITY LAW —

September 17, 2009  WATER POLLUTION LAWSUIT AGAINST CALIFORNIA STATE ORV PARK — Creek Ruined by Off-Road Abuse in Carnegie Recreation Area
September 15, 2009  CALIFORNIA FINDS CLOSING PARKS NOT SO EASY — Liabilities, Lawsuits and Losses Threaten to Swallow Savings from Park Shutdowns
July 16, 2009  REWARD OFFERED FOR OHV VANDALS WHO TRASHED MEADOW —

July 6, 2009  FUEL TAX SURPLUS COULD SAVE CALIFORNIA STATE PARKS — Funds Earmarked for Off-Road Recreation Which Generates Only 1/6th of Revenue
May 7, 2009  COMMERCIAL AQUACULTURE IN WILDERNESS PUSHED BY KEY SENATOR — Point Reyes National Seashore Oyster Farm Dispute Opens Legal Can of Worms
April 24, 2009  REGIONAL WATER BOARD ORDERS CLEAN-UP OF RUBICON TRAIL — Iconic off-road trail has lost its way
April 15, 2009  DEADLY DOMESTIC SHEEP DISEASE THREATENS ENDANGERED SIERRA NEVADA BIGHORN — Feds Threatened With Legal Action to Close Grazing Allotments, Remedy Endangered Species Act Violations
April 8, 2009  CONSTITUTIONAL CLASH OVER DEFUNCT LAND EXCHANGE — Major Religious Establishment Case Rooted in Mojave Cross Deal
February 4, 2009  CALIFORNIA DESERT WINS NEW PROTECTION VIA FEINSTEIN AMENDMENT — Lion’s Share of CDCA Included in Landscape Conservation System by Omnibus Bill
December 9, 2008  ARMY CORPS KAYAKER CASE SETTLED — Biologist Who Demonstrated for the L.A. River Paddles off to Law School
November 18, 2008   CALIFORNIA DESERT’S SIX MILLION ACRE QUESTION MARK — Bill Establishing Landscape Conservation System Fudges on CDCA Inclusion
October 9, 2008  CORPS BIOLOGIST FACES 30-DAY SUSPENSION FOR KAYAKING L.A. RIVER — Off-Duty Challenge to Ruling River Was Not Navigable “Undermined Authority”
August 20, 2008  EPA ELBOWS CORPS ASIDE TO PROTECT WESTERN RIVERS — L.A. and Santa Cruz Rivers Will Benefit from Clean Water Act Safeguards
July 24, 2008  PARK SERVICE CLEARED IN POINT REYES OYSTER OPERATION COMPLAINT — Environmental Effects of Industrial Shellfish Operations Remain Murky
June 4, 2008  OFF-ROAD VEHICLE ROUTE DESIGNATIONS GOING BADLY OFF TRACK — U.S. Senate Hearing Grasping for Solutions to Rising Toll of ORVs on Public Lands
May 23, 2008  LAST STAND FOR THE MOJAVE CROSS? — Supreme Court Only Option to Stay Removal of Giant Cross after 9th Circuit Ruling
March 6, 2008  CONSERVATION GROUPS CHALLENGE SHRINKING HABITAT FOR RARE PLANT ON ALGODONES DUNES —

February 14, 2008  PEIRSON’S MILK-VETCH FURTHER SQUASHED BY FEDS — Shrinking Habitat Is Fragmented for Rare Plant
January 30, 2008  BLM DROPS DESERT ROAD PLAN FOR FURNACE CREEK — California Desert Wilderness Protected from Ravages of Off-Road Vehicles
January 24, 2008  EPA SCIENTISTS CONDEMN AGENCY’S GREENHOUSE GAS WAIVER DENIAL — EPA Staff Decry Hypocrisy of Johnson’s Pledges of Scientific Rigor and Openness
January 24, 2008  JUSTICE DEPARTMENT UNDERCUTS PARK SYSTEM FOR MOJAVE CROSS — Administration Argues Park Service Lacks Authority on Private Land within System
October 22, 2007  INTERIOR ATTORNEY TO TESTIFY AGAINST GOVERNMENT IN COBELL CASE — Whistleblower to Detail Gross Mismanagement of Indian Accounts by Interior
September 24, 2007  AGENCY AUDIT VERIFIES WHISTLEBLOWER MISMANAGEMENT CHARGES — Interior Continues to Mangle Indian Trust Accounts, Losing Millions Monthly
September 18, 2007  JUDGE DENIES OFF-ROAD VEHICLE ACCESS TO SURPRISE CANYON — Unique Oasis in Death Valley National Park Saved
September 5, 2007  OFF-ROAD POLITICS BENDING CALIFORNIA PARK PROTECTIONS — Conservation Groups Warn State to Tread Lightly in State Parks
August 30, 2007  MASSIVE CALIFORNIA WATER RECLAMATION SCHEME FULL OF HOLES — EPA Warns of Unproven Approach, Severe Eco-Effects and Huge Taxpayer Costs
August 28, 2007  LAWYER EXPOSING RIP-OFF OF INDIAN ASSETS FACES FIRING THREAT — Government Cites Secrets Act to Punish Whistleblower for Talking to Reporter
June 18, 2007  TOP FEDERAL SCIENTISTS FIGHT TO WIN JOBS BACK — Ninth Circuit Hears Oral Arguments on Charges of Discriminatory Dismissals
April 30, 2007  BLM SUICIDE UNDERSCORES BUREAUCRATIC INHUMANITY — Inspector General Reports and Workplace Survey Show Imploding Interior Morale
September 28, 2006  ALGODONES DUNES TO STAY PROTECTED FROM ORV ABUSE — Court Enjoins Access until Environmental Reviews Completed
September 7, 2006  “PUBLIC SERVANT OF THE YEAR” SAYS HIS WARNINGS WERE IN VAIN — Dangers of Toxic Prison Computer Recycling Operations Continue Unabated
August 18, 2006  BUSH ADMINISTRATION DENIES PROTECTION TO 16 DESERT SPECIES — Off-Road Pressure Leads to Reversal of Science on Unique Sonoran Wildlife
August 14, 2006  DESERT PRESERVATION LAWSUIT FILED — Agency Staff, Rural Residents and Conservation Groups Challenge Off-Road Vehicle Abuse
June 26, 2006  ATTACKS ON FOREST SERVICE STAFF UP FIVEFOLD IN 2005 — Urban Ills Penetrating Deep into Backwoods as Law Enforcement Presence Shrinks
May 15, 2006  JUSTICE PROBE OF PRISON COMPUTER RECYCLING OPERATIONS — Inspector General to Investigate Health Risks and Failure to Acknowledge Hazards
April 5, 2006  PRISON WHISTLEBLOWER CHARGES OF TOXIC EXPOSURE VALIDATED — Bush Appointee Demands “Independent” Probe of Prison Computer Recycling Plants
March 14, 2006  ALGODONES DUNES WILL STAY PROTECTED — Court Rejects Bush Administration Bid for Off-Road Lobby
February 1, 2006  CALIFORNIA PROTECTS ENDANGERED DESERT STREAMS FROM OFF-ROAD EXCESS — But BLM and off-road lobby fighting smart conservation rule from State
January 5, 2006  GROUPS MOVE TO PROTECT GREAT BASIN DUNES BUTTERFLY AND HABITAT — Bush Interior Department Failing To Protect Sand Mountain Blue From Off-Road Vehicle Excess
December 2, 2005  HOLIDAY OF OFF-ROADING DEATH AND DESTRUCTION AT DUNES — People & child killed, land trashed, yet Bush Interior Dept. wants to expand off-roading
August 24, 2005  FEDERAL PRISONS ADMIT TOXIC EXPOSURE OF STAFF & INMATES — Discipline of Officials Promised for Ignoring Computer Recycling Safety Warnings
July 28, 2005  PRISON WHISTLEBLOWER TESTIFIES — Last Day Of Hearing For Toxic Computer Recycling Program
May 25, 2005  FEDERAL PRISON SAFETY CHIEF ABRUPTLY RESIGNS — Toxic Contamination Worries in Computer Recycling Shops Widen to Other Prisons
April 20, 2005  COURT STRIKES DOWN LAND EXCHANGE TO PRESERVE MOJAVE CROSS — Cross Must Come Down; Court Calls One-Acre Land Trade a “Sham”
April 6, 2005  PARK SERVICE RESCINDS APPROVAL OF MOJAVE “GUZZLERS” — Facing a Lawsuit, Agency Withdraws Its Okay for Artificial Watering in Desert Park
March 31, 2005  ATTORNEY GENERAL INVESTIGATES PRISON COMPUTER RECYCLING — Toxic Exposure of Staff and Inmates at Issue
March 24, 2005  BLM WIll SIGN FLAWED ALGODONES DUNES OFF-ROAD PLAN — Signing of one-sided dunes RAMP will not change on-the-ground habitat protections
March 7, 2005  COMPUTER RECYCLING EXPOSES PRISON STAFF AND INMATES TO TOXICS — Prison Industry Safety Concerns Censored From OSHA Investigation
March 1, 2005  ARTIFICIAL WATERING THREATENS MOJAVE WILDLIFE — Political Appointees at Interior Vetoed Park Objections; Lawsuit Filed
February 28, 2005  FOREST SERVICE ALLOWED TIMBER INDUSTRY TO REWRITE SIERRA PLAN — Intervention to Stop Collusive Settlement Between Industry and Bush Administration
January 5, 2005  COURT RULES BUSH ADMINISTRATION'S OFF-ROAD PLAN IS ILLEGAL THREAT TO DESERT WEB-OF-LIFE — To help recovery, off-road vehicles ordered off 572,000 acres of desert tortoise critical habitat
September 22, 2004  SCHWARZENEGGER TERMINATES ATTORNEY WHISTLEBLOWER BILL — Veto Echoes Action by Gray Davis
September 1, 2004  JOHN DEAN URGES SCHWARZENEGGER TO SIGN ATTORNEY WHISTLEBLOWER LAW — Former White House Counsel Says Government Lawyers Should Be Able to Report Corruption
August 4, 2004  COURT FINES BUSH ADMINISTRATION DESERT SPECIES PERMITS ILLEGAL — Landmark decision finds U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service used illegal definition
August 3, 2004  BUSH ADMINISTRATION HACKS DUNES ENDANGERED SPECIES CRITICAL HABITAT — Local FWS biologists' science-based proposal gutted
July 19, 2004  CONSERVATIONISTS MOVE TO PROTECT 16 ALGODONES DUNES ENDEMIC SPECIES FROM BUSH OFF-ROAD PLAN — BLM's plan to open 86% to off-roading puts rare desert wildlife at risk of extinction
May 19, 2004  WHISTLEBLOWER LEAVES NATIONAL FISHERIES SERVICE — Biologist Cites Misuse of Science
December 15, 2003  PARK SERVICE OKAYS WILDERNESS VIOLATIONS BY ITS STAFF — Groups Petition to End
October 2, 2003  FEDERAL COURT MAINTAINS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE BAN AT ALGODONES DUNES FOR IMMEDIATE FUTURE — Closures Upheld
August 12, 2003  ANTI-ENVIRONMENTAL POLITICIANS LABEL INDUSTRY RALLY A "CONGRESSIONAL HEARING" — Reps. Pombo & Radanovich Allow Only Industry Groups and Hostile Local Politicians; Greens Boycott
August 6, 2003  INFORMATION REQUEST FILED TO UNCOVER WHITE HOUSE MANIPULATION OF KLAMATH POLICY — Groups Seek to Clarify Karl Rove's Role in Dictating Klamath Policy Resulting in 33,000 Dead Salmon
August 5, 2003  WILDLIFE AGENCY PROPOSES 52,780 ACRES OF ALGODONES DUNES FOR CRITCIAL HABITAT PROTECTION — Biologists' Science-based Approach Recognizes Off-road Threats and BLM Plan Failures
July 2, 2003  BUSH PLAN TO ROLL BACK DUNES CONSERVATION FACES BROAD CHALLENGE — Twelve Groups, Local Citizens Target BLM Off-road Plan
June 26, 2003  STATE SUED OVER PLAN TO SPRAY GRAPEVINE PEST — Bacterial Infection Lethal to Grapevines
June 25, 2003  FEDERAL COURT UPHOLDS OFF-ROAD VEHICLE BAN AT ALGODONES DUNES — Industry Loses Anti-environmental Lawsuit
June 24, 2003  BUSH ADMINISTRATION FACES LEGAL CHALLENGE TO CALIFORNIA DESERT OFF-ROAD PLAN — BLM's Plan Would Interfere With Conservation, Wildlife and Air Quality
May 28, 2003  LOCKYER URGED TO HELP HUMBOLDT DA'S TIMBER FRAUD CASE — Watchdog Group Calls Attorney General's Reluctance "Travesty of Justice"
May 23, 2003  SECRETARY NORTON IGNORES BALANCE AND BEST SCIENCE WITH PERMIT TO OPEN DUNES HABITAT TO ORVS — BLM's Final Plan is Even Worse than Bad Draft; Conservationists Will Sue
May 13, 2003  FOREST SERVICE VOWS CULTURAL RESOURCE UPGRADE AT LOS PADRES — Agency Responds to Employee Charges
March 19, 2003  WHISTLEBLOWER TESTIFIES AGAINST AGENCY IN KLAMATH FISH KILL — Biologist Says Water Levels Reduced Without Required Analysis
November 12, 2002  L.A. AIR POLLUTION TRADING GETS LOW MARKS FROM EPA — Report Dampens President's "Clear Skies" Projections
October 28, 2002  KLAMATH RIVER WATER LEVELS SET UNDER POLITICAL PRESSURE — Congressional Leaders Call for Hearings, Whistleblower Protection
October 2, 2002  ARCHAEOLOGICAL TREASURES RUINED IN LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST — Supervisor Retaliated Against Employee Whistleblowers
September 26, 2002  GARBAGE RAILROAD CONSTRUCTION TRASHING ENDANGERED SPECIES AND DESERT PUBLIC LANDS — Conservationists challenge work to haul L.A.'s trash to dump near Joshua Tree NP
September 6, 2002  BUSH ADMINISTRATION FACES LEGAL CHALLENGE TO 5.5M ACRE CALIFORNIA DESERT LAND PLAN — BLM's NECO Plan Reduces Conservation, Harms Desert Tortoise, Biodiversity and Wilderness
September 5, 2002  CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE PASSES GOVERNMENT LAWYER WHISTLEBLOWER BILL — First Major State to Free Public Agency Attorneys to Reveal Confidential Information
June 20, 2002  CONSERVATION GROUPS PETITION SECRETARY NORTON AND NPS — Need To Regulate Hunting in Mojave National Preserve
May 2, 2002  LAWSUIT CHALLENGES SIERRA LOGGING — Complaint Says Department of Forestry is Short-cutting Timber Harvest Approvals
March 27, 2002  DRAFT BLM PLAN COULD OPEN 40,000 DUNE ACRES TO MOTORIZED DESTRUCTION —

January 30, 2002  BLM REASSIGNS KEY SO. CAL. MANAGER AFTER POLITICAL PRESSURE BY OFF-ROAD AND GRAZING INTERESTS — Employee Reassigned
December 20, 2001  CONSERVATIONISTS TAKE TO THE SAND IN DUNES DEFENSE MISSION — Environmental Monitoring At Dunes Stepped Up Over Holidays
December 17, 2001  BLM RANGERS FILE OSHA COMPLAINT — Ranger Runover by Vehicle
September 26, 2001  PUBLIC PROTECTION DUTIES IMPEDED, BLM RANGERS SAY — ORVs Damaging Public Lands
September 7, 2001  U.S. BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT PUTS MOJAVE GRAZING RESTRICTIONS IN FULL EFFECT TO BENEFIT TORTOISE — CONSERVATION GROUPS BACK BLM
July 23, 2001  CONSERVATION GROUPS BACK U.S. BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT — MOVE TO PROTECT DESERT WILDLIFE BY LIMITING LIVESTOCK GRAZING ON PUBLIC LANDS
May 29, 2001  BLM CLOSES SURPRISE CANYON TO OFF-ROAD VEHICLES — Protects Rare Species, Wilderness Values & Water Quality
March 29, 2001  BUSH & NORTON'S BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT IGNORING GRAZING AGREEMENT TO PROTECT DESERT TORTOISE — Environmentalists Ask Court to Hold BLM in Contempt for Failure to Comply with Court Order
January 18, 2001  LAWSUIT SETTLED WITH BLM TO PROTECT 11 MILLION ACRES IN THE CALIFORNIA DESERT — BLM Agrees to Biologically Strategic Actions for Endangered Species Recovery
October 30, 2000  “Near Riot” Conditions in Desert, Says Government Report — “Unsafe for Family Recreation”; Officers in “Life Threatening Situations”
August 29, 2000  STATE FISH & GAME TOLD TO FACILITATE LOGGING — Staff Cite "Micro-management" by Governor's Office
August 22, 2000  GOVERNOR INTERVENES FOR PACIFIC LUMBER — Staff Taken to the Woodshed for Delaying Headwaters Logging
July 6, 2000  DAVIS NEGLECTS TOXIC PROBLEMS — Staff Still See Enforcement Obstruction
October 27, 1999  GRAZING PROGRAM AT MOJAVE PRESERVE IS ILLEGAL, EMPLOYEES CHARGE — Permits Expire at End of Week
Surveys for California
1999  California Department of Toxic Substances Control Survey
1998  California Department of Fish & Game Survey

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