Santa Clarita Organization for Planning the Environment (SCOPE) Celebrates
18 Years of Volunteerism
This year 2005, SCOPE is celebrating 18 years
of community work to preserve the Santa Clarita Valley's quality of life
and promote good planning. What has been accomplished in these past years?
SCOPE has always sought to educate the public about planning and
environmental issues. It has fought to ensure that adequate infrastructure
needs accompany all development, that taxpayers
will not be taxed to pay for this new development and that development
will occur in a manner least damaging to the environment. To this end in
1992 and 1993, SCOPE conducted seminars for the public about the
five significant ecological areas ( a Los
Angeles General Plan designation) that exist in the Santa Clarita Valley
including the Valley Oaks Savannah west of I-5 and the Santa
ClaraRiver.
In 1995 they also helped produce a conference on the Santa
ClaraRiver
to raise awareness of its many important resources such as water supply,
recreation and open space. Most recently, we joined with many businesses
and government agencies to examine what makes our community a desirable
place to live and how we can keep it that way with a Livable Communities
Conference.
Out of concern for continued good planning in our Valley, SCOPE volunteers
put together a presentation for the City Council about what a Development
Monitoring System (such as used by the County
of Los Angeles)
is and how it would help ensure needed community infrastructure such as
schools, and libraries and enough sheriff’s and fire services. We were
complimented by Mayor Carl Boyer afterwards for one of the best presentations
by a community group that he had ever seen.
Part of making sure that good planning occurs in our Valley means going
to public hearings on development projects and reading and reviewing Environmental
Impact Reports (EIRs). Over the 18 years SCOPE
has reviewed many dozens of projects from housing developments to oil pipelines,
landfills and water appropriation applications. Members regularly attend
City and County planning hearings to encourage our government officials
to preserve oaks and the Santa
ClaraRiver,
provide adequate schools, libraries and roads for new development and to
promote clean air and water.
SCOPE has also fostered public education by bringing speakers
to its meetings such as the CountyForester
to talk about oaks and Planning Commission representatives to discuss local
planning issues. We have helped mentor students on school projects for
civics and environmental science classes. We staff booths at local events
with information on our native oak trees, the Santa
ClaraRiver
and the proposed Elsmere landfill. We help the public understand and participate
in the planning process.
If you are interested in these activities, SCOPE invites you
to attend our regular monthly meeting. They are held the third Thursday
of each month, 7:00 PM-- see the website or call (661) 255-6899.
For more information, contact SCOPE.