Why Protect the Desert?
April 28th, 2008 Posted by Larry Hogue in Art & Nature, Sunrise PowerlinkThe Sunrise Powerlink would run at the base of the distant mountains in this photo, altering the experience of hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail in the San Felipe Hills.
“The desert’s a good place for the Sunrise Powerlink — there’s nothing out there.” Those were the most ignorant words I heard at San Diego’s Earth Fair. That sentiment that the desert is a good place for all sorts of infrastructure is being heard a lot these days, from the random person on the street to the Governator.
Which raises the question, what is it about these apparently lifeless places that draws desert enthusiasts’ fascination and love? For me, the scenic or aesthetic is a big part, but only a part, of what I love about the place: the desert’s sense of openness, vastness, wildness and austerity, features which repel some people, are attractive to me. But beyond the scenic, there’s the knowledge, gained only with direct experience, that behind all that apparent lifelessness, life perseveres. That the lifeless appearance is actually the result of survival strategies adopted by many desert plants and some desert animals. That this perseverance is in itself something admirable. That on certain occasions, as we’ve seen this spring, the desert can burst forth with remarkable fecundity.
Chris Clarke’s Creek Running North has a great post on just this issue of the scenic versus desolate qualities of the desert. Chris, who has been the editor of Faultline online environmental journal and Earth Island Journal, describes himself as a “misanthropic dog-and-desert nature poetry blogger.” Chris will be making occasional posts on DesertBlog, so check out his Scenic/Desolate post for a preview.
What do you find that’s scenic in the desert, even in its most austere forms? What do you find that’s worth protecting? Post your comments in the space provided below.
Another power line? Thanks, already got one… but real green power I could use.
Fortunately, for the immediate issue of protecting San Diego and Imperial County deserts from the Sunrise Powerlink, it’s not really a question of choosing between this boondoggle and our scenic backcountry landscapes in all their diversity of life. That’s because the thin veneer of green paint SDG&E and the Chamber have slapped on this thing continues to peel, as shown in this column by Union-Tribune business columnist Dean Calbreath. In addition, there are many much better alternatives to the Powerlink, ones that actually do promote “green energy” in all its senses. And if we must go to the Imperial Valley for renewables, we already have the Southwest Powerlink for that — we just need to take the fossil fuel energy off of it first.
Please attend the May 12 hearings in Borrego Springs to tell the California Public Utilities Commission you want these real green energy alternatives; if you can’t attend, send us a letter that we’ll deliver for you. Full details on the hearing and a form letter are available on our Sunrise Powerlink page.
2 Responses to “Why Protect the Desert?”
By guardian de los parques on Apr 28, 2008
glad you mentioned the pct, I hadn’t seen anybody mention that component so far. from burnt rancheria to scissor’s crossing,from the mountains to the desert, the pct, traverses beautiful and unique terrain as you pass through various ecotones transitioning from high country to low. the devastation of 160′ tall power towers snaking through the wash below , on the timelessness of the current viewshed is difficult to fathom.
I think the desert’s beauty comes from the attenuated landscapes, reduced to the necessary for survival. In this environment things are revealed, the path of least resistance of a flashflood, a plant root’s race against time and erosion,on a sandy arroyo’s bank,as it searches for the little water that exists, or the undescribeable color,form and smell of happening upon a spring bloom at its peak.
By Larry Hogue on Apr 28, 2008
Well said, Gidon. Who else would like to weigh in?