Ryan Carter
A bill that would that would take the first step toward adding local
mountains to a national park climbed another mountain in the Senate.
The Rim of the Valley Corridor Study Act, introduced by Rep. Adam
Schiff (D-Glendale), passed the full Senate Energy and Resources
Committee on Wednesday, 10 days after Schiff testified before a
Senate subcommittee on the matter. Sponsored by Sen. Dianne
Feinstein (D-Calif.) in the Senate, the bill goes to the Senate floor
and Schiff hopes to introduce it in the House.
"I'm very delighted about how quickly the bill was taken up in the
Senate," Schiff said. "The commitment to it this early in the session
is a wonderful start."
Schiff, along with local groups and agencies supporting the bill,
has been working for two years to get it passed.
If it does pass, the act would require the secretaries of the
interior and agriculture to research the feasibility of expanding the
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area to include the Rim of
the Valley Corridor. Along with containing rare ecosystems, the
corridor surrounds the mountains above San Fernando, La Crescenta,
Burbank, Montrose, La Canada Flintridge, Santa Clarita and Pasadena.
The study would be conducted by the National Park Service and the
U.S. Forest Service. The new area would double the size of the Santa
Monica Mountains Recreation Area, the world's largest urban park. It
would link habitat there to ecosystems in the Angeles National
Forest. Evaluators would consult with local governments and report
its findings to Congress within three years.
During the March 4 testimony, Santa Monica Conservancy Executive
Director Joseph T. Edmiston said the results of such a study would
outline the best way of protecting an area of rich habitat. That's
why a quick passage is important, he said in his statement.
"Decisions will be made in the next few years by major landowners
whether or not to engage in park partnerships ... or whether to
commit the land to residential and commercial development," Edmiston
told the subcommittee.
Schiff's congressional counterpart in the region, Rep. David
Dreier (R-La Crescenta) also has supported the study, among other
local and federal officials.
