Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Here s Why at Music Festival at Sepulveda Basin is a Bad Idea

01/04/2016

White pelicans keep company with a cormorant at the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Refuge. | Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

If theres one thing we know about Angelfest, the three-day music festival proposed for the Sepulveda Basin in October, its that we dont know much about what its backers actually plan. An early draft description of the event, though, has upset a whole lot of fans of the San Fernando Valleys beleaguered wildlife. And to veteran conservationists the proposal carries with it a distinct feeling of d j vu. Weve seen this before: someone gets a bright idea and nature pays the price.

That draft proposal, said to have been modified in the environmental review process, involves building five temporary stages in Woodley Park between Woodley Avenue and the 405, upon which bands playing popular music from the last 70 years would attract as many as 60,000 ticketholders from October 7 through October 9.

The problem? That would put the music festival hard up against the 225-acre Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve, in a month in which naturalists expect migrating birds to be counting on the Reserves willows and sycamores for a much-needed bit of rest. And thats hard to do with five bands playing to tens of thousands of celebrating fans, under bright lights with occasional pyrotechnics.

--

--

Its hard to overstate the Sepulveda Basins importance to wildlife. A restored fragment of what was once a chain of wetlands and flood plains along the course of the Los Angeles River, the Wildlife Reserve offers a bit of habitat for the more than 200 species of birds that have been sighted there, including the Federally Endangered least Bells vireo. White pelicans, North Americas second-largest native bird, use the Reserve in Woodley Park as a migration pit stop in September and October.

Seasonal migration is an incredibly perilous undertaking for most birds. The amount of energy put into flying for hundreds or thousands of miles is just part of the issue. While aloft, birds must contend with a wide range of stresses from dehydration and hunger to extremes in temperature. Without enough so-called stopover habitat to provide not only fod and water but just a place to sleep for a few days, migration can often prove fatal for birds on the edge.

And that rest and recuperation is likely next to impossible if bright lights disrupt your sleep, and you must spend energy instead of conserving it contending with the unexpected sight, noise, and distracting movement of tens of thousands of revelers.

Not a great place for a nap: Coachella in 2014 | Photo: Thomas Hawk, some rights reserved

Even absent music festivals, birds at the Reserve have it tough enough. In order to protect the wildlife that uses the Reserve, the Los Angeles City Recreation and Parks Department has crafted a list of rules for visitors that include staying on designated paths, disposing of trash in designated containers and refraining from feeding the animals - all of which would seem essentially unenforceable if 60,000 festival goers descend on the park.

For its part, Recreation and Parks, which favors the festival idea, says that the Departments share of the proceeds from the event - a $250,000 user fee paid by promoter Make Good, plus a percentage of ticket sales - will bring a much-needed infusion of cash into the department thats not vulnerable to political whims. Most of the cash would be spent in the Sepulveda Basin, but the benefit to wildlife in the Reserve is arguable. Much of the spending is projected to cover hardscape, concrete and lighting and other such infrastructure.

According to Rec and Parks Valley Superintendent Charles Singer, the initial proposal that drew so much ire from conservationists - including a petition against the festival launched by the San Fernando Valley Audubon Society, which calls the festival an existential threat to the Reserves wildlife - has been modified significantly. How so? Its hard to tell at the moment. Theres a federal draft Environmental Assessment in the works, as a result of the festivals being held on land Rec and Parks manages for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which essentially built the basin as a flood control project. That draft Environmental Assessment will gauge the degree of damage the (presumably modified) festival will do to the Reserve and other environmental resources. The document is due out in mid-April, after some delay. Once its made public, the public will be able to see just what changes the proponents have made in the festival proposal. Fewer stages? Orienting the activities away from the reserve? Well only know when the documents published.

Singer told me this week that he expects Angelfests Environmental Assessment will find the festival poses no real threat to either the wildlife in the Sepulveda Basin Wildlife Reserve or to any other part of the environment. Under federal law, if a projects Environmental Assessment results in whats called a Finding of No Significant Impact (or FONSI, an admittedly odd acronym in the context of a festival featuring music from the 1950s), then project proponents dont have to put together a full-fledged Environmental Impact Statement. Singer says that extrapolating from the hundreds of other events Rec and Parks has overseen in its history, a FONSI in Angelfests Environmental Assessment is a near-certainty.

Part of the reason proponents are confident in that FONSI is that the Environmental Assessment only covers the 2016 Angelfest. But promoters say that if 2016s festival is successful, they plan to repeat the event in subsequent years.

And thats a problem. The bird population at Sepulveda Basin might well be able to recover from the disturbance of one festival, the way they might from a week or two of really bad weather hitting a crucial bit of stopover habitat. Thus an assessment of one festival, with three da
LINK: https://www.kcet.org/redefine/heres-why-that-music-festival-at-sepulve...
See more stories from kcet

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

11/09/2026

Sony To Showcase Latest Production Technology At IBC2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

EKT To Feature New Linux-Based ATSC 3.0 STB At IBC2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Jimmy Kimmel Shifts Political Interview to YouTube Over FCC Worries

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Remembering 9/11: 25 Years of TV Tech Coverage

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Tiger Group To Auction Equipment from a National Broadcasting Studio

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Grass Valley Launches AVORA at IBC2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Survey: Low Latency for Live Streaming Is Industrys Top Challenge

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Atomos Debuts New HDR Monitors at 2026 IBC Show

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

11/09/2026

Grass Valley Launches AVORA at IBC2026 Bringing All in On...

New standalone solution gives production teams everything they need to create, produce and deliver live content from one flexible system. Grass Valley today an...

11/09/2026

Wave Central a Domo Broadcast Company Named Recipient of...

Recognition honors the development of FPV drone camera systems for live sports broadcast coverage Wave Central, a Domo Broadcast Company that develops advanced...

11/09/2026

Teradek Launches Bolt 7 A Unified Wireless System for Zer...

Teradek, the industry leader in zero-delay wireless video solutions, announced the launch of Bolt 7, which now includes a unified wireless video and data system...

11/09/2026

ACT Pixel Academy Announces Autumn Courses

The ACT Entertainment tvONE and Green Hippo Pixel Academy has released its autumn course schedule, with hands-on training dates in September, October and Novemb...

11/09/2026

Scientists discover a new way that a disease-linked protein comes apart

LA JOLLA, CA-Transthyretin amyloid disease (ATTR) is a progressive, life-threatening condition caused when the protein transthyretin (TTR) breaks apart and aggr...

11/09/2026

Major Update to Blackmagic Cloud

Major Update to Blackmagic Cloud Brie Clayton September 10, 2026 0 Comments Blackmagic Design has announced a major update to Blackmagic Cloud which a...

11/09/2026

Dalet Helps Media Organizations Navigate the Rise of Synthetic Content with NVIDIA AI

Dalet Helps Media Organizations Navigate the Rise of Synthetic Content with NVID...

10/09/2026

First AI-Generated Golf Announcer To Debut During New Mexico Open

Duff Foreman is an AI-generated announcer who will add color to this month's New Mexico Open...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Bitmovin Rolls Out Encoder Version 3

Bitmovin is rolling out Encoder Version 3, the next major release of the technology behind its VOD and Live Encoders. Version 3 is built on a premise every stre...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Net Insight Highlights Open Live Media for Controlled Live Services

At IBC2026, on booth 1.B47, Net Insight will showcase Open Live Media, its architecture for delivering resilient live media services across networks, partners, ...

10/09/2026

PWHL, Scripps Sports Sign National Television Deal for 2026-27 Season

The Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) and Scripps Sports have announced a national broadcast rights agreement for the 2026-27 season, a landmark par...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Trusted Partner Network Debuts Fix It or Risk It to Tackle Everyday Security Risks

The Trusted Partner Network (TPN), the global content security initiative powere...

10/09/2026

NFL Brings Back Creator Programs to Deliver Access, Original Storytelling During the 2026 Season

The NFL is launching its most expansive creator programming yet, bringing togeth...

10/09/2026

Sportsnet Removes 150 Blackouts for More National NHL Games Than Ever in 2026-2027 Season

Sportsnet is set to deliver its biggest hockey season ever with a national sched...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: LiveU Showcases Starlink for News and Sports Broadcast as Clarus Integrated Reseller

LiveU is now a Clarus Integrated Reseller, bringing Starlink's fast, reliabl...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Mimir Develops Single Layer for Content, Metadata, AI Orchestration

Mimir is the cloud-native media production platform built for teams that need to move media fast across live, archive, web, social, and broadcast workflows. At ...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: ATSC 3.0 To Receive Technology & Engineering Emmy Award for Significant Advancement in Television Broadcasting

ATSC is being honored with a 2026 Technology & Engineering Emmy Award by the Nat...

10/09/2026

Audio-Technica Presents BP880R Contact Transducer for Immersive Sports Broadcast, Production Audio Enhancement

Audio-Technica has introduced the BP880R Contact Transducer, a specialized micro...

10/09/2026

ESPN, ION Team Up to Broadcast WTGL Starting on Nov. 8

TMRW Sports in partnership with the LPGA, today announced multiyear U.S. media rights agreements with ESPN and Scripps Sports/ION to bring WTGL, the new women&#...

10/09/2026

SportsNet Pittsburgh Honors Roberto Clemente Day With Second-Annual Live Spanish-Language Pirates Telecast

SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) in partnership with Major League Baseball and the Pit...

10/09/2026

Tennis Channel Gives Fans Options With Premium Subscription on Roku

Tennis Channel announced today its launch as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel. Tennis Channel offers viewers a single home for Tennis Channel and Ten...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform With New Capabilities

Dolby has announced major updates to Dolby OptiView, its live sports platform, ahead of IBC 2026. The updates include new AI-powered intelligence to better unde...

10/09/2026

Dalet Names Brian Doheny as CEO

Dalet has appointed Brian Doheny as CEO. Doheny joined Dalet as President and Chief Revenue Officer in April 2026. Since joining Dalet, Doheny has led the compa...

10/09/2026

IBC 2026: Sony Demonstrates Various Creative Solutions for Attendees at the RAI

Sony, as well as its partner company Nevion, is starting IBC 2026 with a handful of announcements for attendees to see on the show floor. Sony Announces the 4t...

10/09/2026

SoFi Stadium Solidifies Production Output With Multi-Layered Tech Renovation

The six-year-old venue is expanding capabilities for NFL action, Super Bowl LXI, 2028 Summer Olympics SoFi Stadium, as well as the surrounding area known as Ho...

10/09/2026

Acon Digital introduce Acoustica 8

Editing, restoration & mastering suite upgraded Acon Digital Acoustica 8 audio editing restoration mastering software. Acon Digital have just launched the la...

10/09/2026

Readipop & XOX open XOX Studio

Classic synths & drum machines available to play Based in Reading, UK, Readipop are a music and arts charity with a long track record of innovative, partici...

10/09/2026

Neumann launch the KH 310 II & KH 350

Popular model updated & new addition introduced With many of the models in Neumann's KH family now boasting onboard DSP and support for the company'...

10/09/2026

Arturia launch the AudioFuse Studio Rev2

Improved desktop interface announced The latest iteration of Arturia's flagship desktop audio interface has just arrived, introducing improved preamps, ...

10/09/2026

Progress needs proof: Rohde & Schwarz showcases its trailblazing test solutions at EuMW 2026 in London

Progress needs proof: Rohde & Schwarz showcases its trailblazing test solutions ...

10/09/2026

Nielsen launches CTV ad spend data into its French Ad Intel product

France launch follows UK and Germany as Nielsen expands product across EMEA Paris, France, September 10, 2026 - Nielsen, a global leader in audience measuremen...

10/09/2026

Fabric Data, TMT Insights Merge to Create Fabric Insights

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

10/09/2026

Leading Audio Manufacturers Join Forces on Dialog Intelli...

Leading professional audio manufacturers NUGEN Audio, RTW, Steinberg and Telos Alliance have joined forces with Fraunhofer IDMT to establish a common approach t...

10/09/2026

Setplex Introduces AI Insider for Faster Smarter Video Se...

Built Into Setplex's Zapflex Platform, AI Insider Turns Video Service Data Into Actionable Insights Setplex today introduced AI Insider, a breakthrough new...

10/09/2026

sync labs to Introduce sync productions at IBC2026 Bringi...

Managed service changes dialogue without actor-specific training or facial rigging while preserving the original performance and fitting established post-produc...

10/09/2026

ACT Pixel Academy Autumn Courses PR

The ACT Entertainment tvONE and Green Hippo Pixel Academy has released its autumn course schedule, with hands-on training dates in September, October and Novemb...

10/09/2026

Orange Polska Reaffirms Its Trust in Viaccess-Orca with M...

Orange Polska continues to Rely on Viaccess-Orca for Secure TV Services and the Next Phase of its Technology Evolution Viaccess-Orca (VO), a global leader in T...

10/09/2026

Generate and create directly in your timeline with new AI-powered innovations in Premiere and After Effects

Generate and create directly in your timeline with new AI-powered innovations in...

10/09/2026

Tedial to introduce Media Business Hub at IBC 2026

Tedial is introducing Media Business Hub (MBH) at IBC 2026, a new business enablement platform designed to help media organizations unlock the full value of the...