QWR OPINION - ANZA-BORREGO USERS FACE PROPOSED POWER LINE PROJECT

 

OPINION

By Don Amador

May 12, 2026

 

ANZA-BORREGO USERS FACE PROPOSED POWER LINE PROJECT

 

For generations, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park has offered Californians and visitors from around the world a rare opportunity to experience wide-open desert landscapes, scenic backcountry roads, primitive camping, dark night skies, and an unmatched sense of adventure and solitude. Whether you explore the park by adventure motorcycle, dual-sport bike, 4WD vehicle, Jeep, mountain bike, hiking boots, or simply through scenic touring, the park’s undeveloped character is what makes the experience special.

 

That experience may now face a significant new challenge as a proposed large-scale power transmission project could introduce major industrial infrastructure into portions of the Anza-Borrego region. According to information released by the Anza-Borrego Foundation and other stakeholders, the project may include new high-voltage transmission corridors, towers, construction areas, access routes, and long-term utility infrastructure that could substantially alter scenic vistas and backcountry recreation experiences within or adjacent to the park.

 

For many recreationists, this issue is bigger than a single project. Across California, public recreation lands are increasingly facing pressure from industrial-scale infrastructure, mining projects, renewable energy development, utility corridors, and other forms of encroachment. While California’s energy and infrastructure needs are important, recreation values and public access should not become collateral damage in the process.

 

Street-legal OHV users, overlanders, dual-sport riders, and adventure motorcyclists should pay particular attention to this proposal because the Anza-Borrego region contains hundreds of miles of roads and routes that connect scenic destinations, remote campsites, historic sites, and iconic desert landscapes. Industrial transmission corridors and associated construction activities could fragment those experiences, diminish scenic quality, alter the primitive character of travel routes, and potentially affect long-term access and recreation management decisions.

 

The good news is that the project is still in the early public scoping stage. That means park users still have an opportunity — and responsibility — to get informed and engaged.

 

Now is the time for park users to stay informed, participate in the process, and speak up for balanced solutions that protect both California’s infrastructure needs and its irreplaceable public recreation lands.

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Don Amador has been in the trail advocacy and recreation management profession for over 33 years.   Don is President of Quiet Warrior Racing LLC. Don is Past President/CEO and current board member of the Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance. Don served on the California Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Commission from 1994-2000. He has won numerous awards including being a 2016 Inductee into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame and the 2018 Friend of the AMA Award. Don served as the government affairs lead for AMA District 36 in Northern California from 2019 – 2023. Don is a Core-Team member on FireScape Mendocino.  Don served as an AD Driver at the FS North Zone Fire Cache for the 22, 23, and 24 wildfire seasons. Don writes from his home in Cottonwood, CA.