The San Diego press covered efforts to protect California gnatcatchers,
restore El Monte Valley, and to save Rose Canyon. EHL also appeared
on the radio dial.
On August 6, 2006, the
North County Times reported on The Bridges
project in San Diego County (“Elfin Forest Residents fight to preserve
their slice of rural life”). EHL’s Dan Silver was quoted regarding the
importance of this site to the Multiple Species Conservation
Plan-North. "We're at the point where every bit of high-quality land is
important. The idea of the (conservation) plan is to separate the wheat
from the chaff. And the efforts to date indicate that this is land that
is important to maintain so the present system can be a success."
Similar views were expressed by Silver in the
Rancho Santa Fe Review
(“Tiny Bird at Center of Bridges Expansion Controversy,” August 10,
2006). “If you’re going to have a preserve system that’s successful,
you need to preserve the best nesting habitat for this threatened
species,” Silver said. “Our concern is that if the Bridges side is not
protected, it throws the whole plan in jeopardy.”
EHL’s efforts to restore the El Monte Valley near Lakeside in San Diego
County were covered by the
San Diego Union-Tribune on August 25, 2006
(“El Monte habitat plan hinges on water issue”). EHL’s Michael Beck was
described as remaining confident the issues can be resolved. “This is a
very important legacy for the region, the state and the community,” he
said. “It's going to become a vibrant, dynamic system where wildlife
will be everywhere.”
The litigation of EHL and other groups over Rose Canyon in San Diego
was covered by the
San Diego Union-Tribune (“City is sued over Rose
Canyon bridge,” September 2, 2006). “Unfortunately, (the city) did not
prepare an adequate environmental impact report to assess the impacts
of this project,” said San Francisco lawyer Rachel Hooper, lead counsel
for the groups. “And the impacts of the project on wildlife in the
canyon and other resources in the canyon are known to be severe.”
The
San Diego Daily Transcript (“Lawsuit filed against Regents Road
bridge project,” Sept. 5, 2006) described the park, community, and
habitat reasons for the litigation. "The Regents Road bridge project
fails on all counts," said Deborah Knight, president of Friends of Rose
Canyon. "It's an ineffective traffic project, failing to relieve
congestion in the area. It's horrifically expensive. And it would
destroy the heart one of the city's open space parks, a regional
treasure for wildlife and for people."
On October 3, 2006, EHL Executive Director Dan Silver was a guest on
KPCC-FM’s AirTalk program, hosted by Larry Mantle. The live
program dealt with the Endangered Species Act and Southern California
habitat planning efforts.