And I blatently stole this from another forum (south bay riders), that forum will probably have the most up to date information regarding this issue:
http://www.southbayriders.com/forums/showthread.php?t=89639
Contact City Editor Eric Firpo at 830-4223 or
efirpo@tracypress.com
The owner of a large family ranch that borders the Carnegie State Vehicular Recreation Area has a hand in an environmental lawsuit that aims to limit pollution in the off-road park that flows into Corral Hollow Creek.
Mark Connolly of the Connolly Ranch is a member of California Sportfishing Alliance and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, court records show, the two groups that filed a lawsuit Sept. 17 against the state parks department.
Attorneys for the groups convinced Alameda County Judge Frank Roesch to order the park closed until parks officials produce a plan to limit how much silt and other pollution streams into Corral Hollow Creek, which has shown high amounts of copper, zinc, aluminum and other metals in tests.
The state attorney general’s office appealed the ruling, however, and now the state’s First District Court of Appeal will take up the case. The court also postponed the park’s scheduled closure Tuesday.
The environmental groups have until Jan. 6 to argue that the park would be badly damaged if left open during the time it takes to get a permit from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board.
Though parks officials point to industrial uses by neighbors that surround the park, the lawsuit says water samples taken from creeks outside the park have little heavy metal contamination, yet samples inside the park show high levels of heavy metals.
The attorney general has until Jan. 11 to respond to the environmental groups’ arguments, and if the parks service prevails, the park will remain open indefinitely.
If the environmental groups emerge on top, the park will likely close until officials from the parks department receive a water board permit.
Connolly was part of the original lawsuit filed Sept. 17 through a declaration attached to the lawsuit, and on Dec. 18, he submitted papers opposing the postponement of Carnegie’s closure and said he could act as a witness, to testify about erosion he personally has seen.
Connolly said in court papers that he routinely drives through the off-road park to get to his home on the 130-year-old ranch, which is several thousand acres in size.
Connolly said in his filing that Dec. 14, for the first time, he saw signs at the park that designated one area as a creek crossing, though he said motorcycle riders continue to plow through the creek bottom.
Connolly submitted photographs and argued throughout the seven-page document that use of the motorcycle trails and work by state heavy-equipment operators cause silt to pour into the creek.
Though Connolly is a lawyer, court records show other lawyers are working on the case.
Connolly has known Bill Jennings, the head of the Sportfishing Alliance, for more than 20 years, the two said, and Jennings said he’s been a regular at Connolly’s annual picnic.
Jennings said Connolly has in the past suggested that the alliance look into pollution problems at Carnegie, but when asked if Connolly asked him to sue the park, Jennings said, “No.”
The Sportfishing Alliance is interested in water pollution wherever it occurs, Jennings said, even in a seasonal creek that dries up in farm fields most winters before it connects to the San Joaquin Delta.
The Sportfishing Alliance also fights to protect vernal pools and other waterways, and Jennings said he’s worked on the off-road Rubicon Trail in Lake Tahoe with the Public Employees group, which he said independently decided to fight pollution at Carnegie.
Connolly said he’s a member of the Public Employees group because he believes in environmental responsibility. He said he’s talked with the group about Carnegie since the lawsuit was filed, but he had little discussion about the off-road park with the group before that.
It’s unclear how the Public Employees group became involved in Carnegie, though the group has worked to stanch pollution and environmental damage at other off-road areas. Karen Schambach of the Public Employees environmental group could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Connolly is the husband of Celeste Garamendi, whose brother John Garamedi is California’s lieutenant governor and a Democratic candidate for the East Bay’s 10th Congressional District. The lieutenant governor has won political endorsements and received financial donations from the Service Employees International Union, which represents large numbers of public employees, campaign records show.
Connolly called any suggestion that there could be a connection between the Public Employees lawsuit and the Service Employees’ political support for his wife’s brother a “conspiracy theory” with no basis in fact.
ò Contact City Editor Eric Firpo at 830-4223 or
efirpo@tracypress.com.
With billions of acres of unused land for hiking use (that never gets used) why not allocate some of it to off road rec. it is already there. 
The place was packed, riders were eveywhere, all the MX tracks were being used. I parked up on a hill that over looked the valley and was truely pissed about this whole issue!
