Open Space

  1. Approximately 94% of the land in Mono County is publicly owned; approximately 88% of the public land is federally owned. Public lands in the county are managed by the US Forest Service (USFS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), the State Lands Commission, and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP). Much of the federal land is managed as open space by the Humboldt-Toiyabe and Inyo national forests and the BLM in order to provide outdoor recreation opportunities, grazing opportunities, and to protect the natural resources. The County has no planning authority on those lands. Much of the land owned by the LADWP also remains open space in order to protect watershed values. LADWP lands are used for grazing and outdoor recreation. The County has planning authority on those lands except for activities directly relating to LADWP’s public utility purpose.
  2. Since such a great percentage of the land in the county remains open space and since the County has no direct authority over much of that land, one of Mono County's main concerns about open space is coordinating County policies with the land use policies of the agencies managing the public lands. The County is also concerned about the impacts of federal open space policies on county resources.
  3. The open space value of lands owned by the LADWP and the Walker River Irrigation District (WRID) is a major concern. Much of that land was acquired for watershed protection and remains essentially open space. It includes wetlands, riparian and wildlife habitat, and land adjacent to and visible from scenic highways.
  4. Open space within community areas for parks and recreational use is a concern. All of the communities in the county have existing park sites, but the extent and type of facilities at those sites vary. The Long Valley area also has a regional park facility at Whitmore that is shared with the Town of Mammoth Lakes. The desire to expand and/or improve existing facilities must be balanced with long-term maintenance costs. Increased population throughout the county will require increased community recreational facilities and maintenance costs (see Circulation Element for policies on facilities).
  5. Most communities lack a comprehensive trail system for walking, biking, equestrian, and cross-country ski use, and are interested in developing local trail systems.
  6. Various areas in Mono County are subject to a variety of natural hazards, including floods, fire, avalanches, and geologic hazards. The protection of those areas as open space is a valuable method of protecting people and property from the potential impacts of those hazards.
  7. The Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center (MCMWTC) operates a base on Department of Defense land along State Route 108, and utilizes training grounds primarily on US Forest Service (USFS) lands, both of which are outside the jurisdiction of Mono County. The MCMWTC is developing a conservation plan with the USFS to address the effects of military operations on natural resources, and a Military Encroachment Zone map is included in the General Plan maps at https://monomammoth.maps.arcgis.com/home/.
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