Jurisdictional Thicket Perils Plan to Protect Wildlife Route

Representatives of more than 35 environmental groups and governmental agencies deliberated Wednesday on a cause all agreed is noble: protecting the only remaining wildlife corridor between the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains.

But, by the end of the two-hour meeting held at the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District’s headquarters in Simi Valley, most participants appeared dazed by the bureaucratic, economic and political hurdles that appeared likely to hinder their efforts.

Coordinating any endeavor to maintain a migration pathway for wild animals over about 50 square miles around the Santa Susana Pass will be a “monumental task” because the area straddles Los Angeles and Ventura counties, Simi Valley Councilwoman Ann Rock told the group.

“There are many areas of jurisdiction in question,” she said. “Can you imagine doing an environmental impact report and just determining what the lead agency would be? It would be easier if we were talking about an area within a single city’s limits.”

Participants in the meeting said there is a need to stem housing and other development to retain a corridor for animals through the Simi Hills and Santa Susana Mountains, the home of mountain lions, bears, coyotes, rabbits, eagles and many other creatures.

“We want to see if there’s a consensus on the issue,” said Barbara Johnson, a member of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Santa Susana Mountains.

Millions in Land-Purchase Expenses

But Rock cautioned the group that preventing development of the area would cost untold millions of dollars because governmental agencies would have to buy privately owned lands.

“You have to acquire the land,” she said. “Who’s going to pay for that?”

Rock said it could take years to get government action on the issue. Completing an environmental impact report--examining traffic along the Simi Valley Freeway, water and air quality and the economic needs of the local population--would take at least 18 months, she said.

Spearheading the drive for the wildlife corridor is environmental activist Jan Hinkston of Chatsworth, who proposed the establishment of a Santa Susana State Historic Park.

However, others at Wednesday’s meeting agreed only to compile available information on the biological and cultural makeup of the wildlife corridor.

Johnson, who led the discussion, said she hopes to establish a task force to lobby for a moratorium on construction in the area.

Johnson also called for preservation of sparse water holes and pathways for animals under the Simi Valley Freeway.

Mark Knight, a Santa Monica biologist, said encroaching urbanization threatens to cut off the vital passage between the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains. If their walkways are not protected, the animals begin to inbreed or die off, he said.

“The losers in this case are large-bodied mammals,” Knight said. If development continues at its current pace, mountain lions inhabiting the area will die off, he said.

Hinkston, founder of the Santa Monica Park Assn., said there is an urgent need to establish a park in the area because of increasing development. She said her organization will appear before the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today to appeal the approval of a housing development near Santa Susana Pass.

Others at the meeting seemed less sure of what path to take.

“I don’t think a lot of these people appreciated the complexities of what they’re trying to do,” said one participant.

“The meeting lacked a definite focus,” said another participant, Allen Ulm, a representative of the state Parks and Recreation Department. “There’s got to be a specific proposal to work with. . . . We don’t have that yet.”