Re: Friends of Juniper Flats putting in their 2 cents worth

I made an error in the last paragraph of yesterday's post. Actually, the BLM has no authority to patrol private property adjacent to BLM-managed public lands. This is largely because, a few years ago, San Bernardino County Sheriff Gary Penrod revoked a longstanding cooperative law enforcement agreement with BLM law enforcement.

The complaints from Friends of Juniper Flats and others concern the drastic reduction, the last few years, in BLM ranger patrols on some of the public lands it manages. Specifically in areas adjacent to private property where Public Land OHV use spills over and becomes trespass. This BLM patrol presence is important because it helps prevent problems berfore they occur. Once a trespass occurs on private property, then it is the responsibility of the Sheriff's Department to respond to landowner complaints.

When both agencies work together, the results can be very positive.