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March 15, 2001 Mono Lake Committee supports DWP easement negotiationsPress Contact: For Immediate Release The Mono Lake Committee is enthusiastic about the proposal now under negotiation to protect lands owned by Los Angeles throughout Inyo and Mono counties. "The proposed agreement is good news for vast amounts of land in the Owens Valley and in the Mono Basin," said Geoff McQuilkin, Co-Executive Director of the Mono Lake Committee. "Los Angeles would be assuring communities throughout the Eastern Sierra that the wide open spaces and rural lifestyles we value have a future." "DWP would be giving something back to the Eastern Sierra," said Frances Spivy Weber, Co-Executive Director of the Mono Lake Committee. "And making a gift to future generations of Californians" The proposed conservation easement would remove most Department of Water and Power (DWP) lands from development while leaving land available around existing towns for future growth. Public day use of the lands for fishing, hiking, skiing, hunting, and other uses would continue, and the easement would not reduce the property taxes paid by DWP. # # # The Mono Lake Committee is a nonprofit citizens' group dedicated to protecting and restoring the Mono Basin ecosystem, educating the public about Mono Lake and the impacts on the environment of excessive water use, and promoting cooperative solutions that protect Mono Lake and meet real water needs without transferring environmental problems to other areas.
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