After a six month grassroots public effort, the world-renowned state park at Mono Lake—the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve—has been removed from California’s 70-park closure list.

This great news means that the Reserve will remain open to the public, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors to the local economy, providing public access to Mono Lake, offering educational programs, and assuring ongoing public management and stewardship for Mono Lake’s unique ecosystem.

The December 1 announcement by California State Parks comes just in time for next year’s 30^th anniversary of the park, which was created in 1982. For Mono Lake friends and supporters this is certainly a moment to be thankful for, and cause for celebration.

“This is the best Christmas present we could ever wish for. The state park is critical to keeping Mono Lake protected for future generations,” said Sally Gaines, Mono Lake Committee Board Chair. “It’s great news that creative solutions will keep it open.”

Mono Lake leaves the closure list thanks to a broad public effort to keep the Mono Lake Reserve open combined with a new parking fee revenue solution. The news also puts to rest questions raised by many including the Mono Lake Committee about how Mono Lake was selected for the closure list in the first place.

Mono Lake Committee members and Mono Lake fans near and far wrote letters and signed locally-placed petitions all summer, opposing closure and offering possible solutions. Over 4,000 letters and petition signatures were hand-delivered to Governor Jerry Brown, Parks Director Ruth Coleman, Mono County’s State Assemblymember Kristin Olsen, and State Senator Ted Gaines.

Robert Hanna, active Mono Lake champion and great-great-grandson of John Muir, was bouncing off the walls with excitement. “Behind every great accomplishment you’ll find togetherness, and it was a pleasure to work alongside everyone who answered the call to protect Mono Lake. This is our legacy—we must all stand up and find solutions to protect the places we love.”

Important support for keeping the reserve open as a critical piece of the local tourism-based economy came from the Mono County Board of Supervisors, the Mono County Film & Tourism Commission, and the Mammoth Lakes Town Council.

Rusty Gregory, CEO of Mammoth Mountain Ski Area, commented, “I applaud California State Parks for deciding to keep the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve open and operating. This decision is a win-win for the environment and the economy. The park’s quarter million visitors can now continue to support the fragile rural economies of our adjacent communities as they enjoy convenient access to the natural wonders of Mono Lake.”

The California State Parks agency, with its highly trained staff and depth of experience, will continue to manage and protect the sovereign state lands and waters of the Mono Lake Reserve sustainably for public enjoyment. A parking fee solution will address the agency’s concerns about the current lack of user fee revenue at the Mono Lake Reserve. The modest parking fee will be put into place at the state’s major west shore visitation site—Old Marina—and all funds collected will be used to offset operating expenses at the Mono Lake Reserve. Given the low cost and high efficiency of the Reserve operation, adding a user fee to the already strong level of volunteer and community support means it is possible to substantially strengthen the foundation of the Reserve and keep it open and operating.

Mono Lake is home to many partnerships, and the Mono Lake Committee commends the Bodie Foundation for stepping forward to operate the new fee collection system. The Bodie Foundation’s special relationship with California State Parks as a non-profit cooperating association allows it to operate park-based programs such as the museum and bookstore at Bodie State  Historic Park. At Mono Lake, that makes it the perfect organization to handle the collection and transfer of fees directly to Mono Lake Reserve operations.

State Assemblymember Kristin Olsen said, “I’m thrilled that the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve has successfully been removed from the state’s park closure list. Mono Lake is an integral part of Mono County’s economy, and is a world-renowned tourist destination. Finding creative solutions through public-private partnerships is key to ensuring that Californians continue to have access to state parks for many years to come. I congratulate the community members who have worked hard and creatively to keep Mono Lake open.”

With Mono Lake off the state park closure list, now is a perfect time to make plans to visit the lake’s unique tufa towers and scenic views, either in the winter or with the migratory birds next summer. Mono Lake visitor resources can be found at the Mono Lake Committee website www.monolake.org and for Mono County information, visit www.monocounty.org.

California’s budget woes played out over the summer as word of the planned closure of 70 state parks, including Mono Lake and adjacent shoreline lands that compose the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve, spread far and wide. The Mono Lake Committee has been hard at work seeking solutions to change the state’s plan. The chance of success is looking very good, which is rewarding given the common closure responses we heard at Mono Lake over the summer: “no way,” “how can we stop this,” and “what are they thinking?”

Campers with a tufa fire, 1970s. When you invite 250,000 people to visit your favorite lake, visitor management experts like state park rangers are a critical asset. When the first state park rangers arrived in 1982 tourists camped on the shoreline, made campfires in tufa, and carted whole tufa towers away in their cars to decorate their front lawns. Mono Lake Committee archive photo.

Indeed, it remains unclear exactly what the thinking was behind the closure list released on May 13, 2011. The Committee submitted a public records request the next day, seeking the analysis (more…)

By this time in the summer many thanks are due to all the amazing people who have volunteered their time pulling invasive plants and watering trees at Restoration Wednesdays for the past two months. We at the Mono Lake Committee want to say a special thanks to a dedicated group of volunteers, Ken & Gayle Midas as well as Donna & Jerry Farris, who have donated their time every Wednesday for the past month and a half to aid in restoration efforts. They have enthusiastically pulled enormous (more…)

As the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting, the state’s plan to close the State Park at Mono Lake saves very few dollars.

In fact, based on information the Mono Lake Committee has obtained from the Department of Parks and Recreation under a public records act request, it’s even less than the $111,278 cost assigned to operating the park.

Two points worth noting: (more…)

This week the Inyo National Forest notified us that they are implementing a new round of budget cuts, adding to those announced earlier in the spring.

The budget reductions hit Mono Lake visitors hard. Two Forest Service  staff in the Mono Basin have been laid off, and the federal visitor center may close weeks earlier than usual.

Even more disappointing, the Forest Service has ended their daily 1:00pm ranger-led walking tour of (more…)

The Bureau of Land Management will lead a public field tour on July 9 to look at areas east of Mono Lake proposed for wind data gathering and possible subsequent wind farm construction.

Public scoping meetings will follow July 11 at 6:30pm in Lee Vining and July 12 at 6:30pm in Benton at their respective community centers. Details: BLM Press Release.

The Mono Lake Committee is gathering information on this proposal, which appears to include a wind farm concept of up to 500 megawatts and 167 towers in size. We will attend the field tour and meetings and report further details here and in the Mono Lake Newsletter.

Morgan Lindsay and Abby Rivin with the nearly 1,000 letters protesting closure of the state park at Mono Lake. Photo by Elin Ljung.

930 letters and 280 petition signatures were sent to Governor Jerry Brown, Director of California State Parks Ruth Coleman, Senator Ted Gaines, and Assemblywoman Kristin Olsen to protest the pending closure of Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve.  Since its creation in 1982, the Reserve has provided the management and educational programs needed to protect the lake. These programs function with the support of  many hard-working volunteers and private funding, which would be lost if the park closed. Closure of the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve will produce no saving for the state and will place the ecological resources of Mono Lake in jeopardy. Please add your voice to the thousands who want to see Mono Lake stay open!

Wondering what all 70 of the California state parks slated for closure look like?

Check out this moving photo essay profiling each park unit, including Mono Lake of course.

Let’s be clear: This summer, 2011, Mono Lake is open and ready for your visit!

Were you thinking it wasn’t? You wouldn’t be alone. The planned closure of 70 California state parks is creating a lot of confusion. But closures won’t take effect until the 2011 season is finished.

So grab your hiking shoes and camera, and come on over to enjoy all that Mono Lake has to offer. Some great activities are listed here.

But don’t forget, the clock is ticking toward shutdown, which we expect to take effect when the snow starts to fall in November, 2011. Want to help us stop the shutdown? Your letter of concern is critical, so please be sure to make your voice heard on this important issue.

As we all enjoy the salty shores of Mono Lake this season, the Mono Lake Committee is also hard at work to find solutions so that next summer Mono Lake doesn’t feature a “closed” sign.

Friends of Mono Lake’s state park–the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve–gathered over the weekend to show their support for keeping Mono Lake open!

Mono Lake friends call for keeping Mono Lake's state park open!

Today Mono Lake Committee staff have the rally photo above on display in Sacramento–and during (more…)