Poster contest returns after two-year hiatus
Participating K-12 students eligible for $100 prizes, new bicycles
After a two-year hiatus, the annual Clean Air Month Poster Contest is RETURNING to give Mojave Desert students an opportunity to show off their artistic skills and win big prizes.
The theme of this year’s contest is, “Our Desert Air.” As MDAQMD celebrates 30 years of reducing emissions in its communities, the District is inviting students to help illustrate all there is to love and protect in the vast expanse of the Mojave Desert.
Students who wish to participate must create an original hand-drawn poster that shows one or more features of the Mojave Desert that make it unique. Whether it’s as detailed as a scene in the midst of Mojave National Preserve, or it’s as simple as an individual Joshua tree, put those creative minds to work to help shine a spotlight on the beauty of our region.
Students compete in one of four categories by grade level: kindergarten through second; third through fifth; sixth through eighth; and ninth through 12th. The top three winners in each category will win $100, $50 and $25 respectively and every accepted entry is automatically entered for a chance to win a new bicycle generously donated by contest cosponsor Victor Valley Transit Authority.
Entry deadline is 5 p.m. April 27, 2023. Students in grades K-12 who attend school in the High Desert portion of San Bernardino County or Palo Verde Valley of Riverside County are eligible to participate.
For more information including clarification on rules or how to submit, contact MDAQMD Communications Analyst Martial Haprov at mhaprov@mdaqmd.ca.gov.
 Barbara Riordan, left, accepts a plaque honoring her service from MDAQMD Executive Director Brad Poiriez at the California Air Resources Board meeting in January 2023.
Riordan honored for decades of service
Riordan served Mojave Desert for 40 years; held seat on California Air Resources Board for 32 years
The MDAQMD Governing Board bid a fond farewell to outgoing and long-serving Board Member Barbara Riordan at the end of January. Her last meeting at the MDAQMD dais was Jan. 23.
Riordan has been a mainstay in San Bernardino County and California government since the 1970s.
Barbara Cram Riordan was appointed to the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors in the 3rd District in August 1983 to fill the remaining term of then Supervisor David McKenna.
She was only the third woman in the county’s 131 years of history at that time to hold the Supervisor office, and the first in the 3rd District.
She was elected by voters to a full term in 1984. She was selected by her peers as Chair of the Board of Supervisors in 1988, which she occupied until 1990. Through reelection, Mrs. Riordan remained as 3rd District Supervisor until 1996.
As 3rd District Supervisor, Mrs. Riordan also served as a board member of the San Bernardino County Air Pollution Control District. When the county APCD transitioned by legislative statute to an independent agency, Mrs. Riordan was one of the inaugural members of the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District Governing Board.
After leaving the Board of Supervisors, Mrs. Riordan was selected by the balance of the MDAQMD Governing Board as its Public Member, a seat she has held through reappointments through January 2023.
Considering her appointment to the Board of Supervisors in 1983 and continuous service, this effectively equates to 40 years of commitment to air quality and the residents of the Mojave Desert Air Basin.
In 1991, Mrs. Riordan was appointed by Governor Pete Wilson to the California Air Resources Board. She was reappointed throughout that service and chose to leave her seat also in January.
“Mrs. Riordan has been part of virtually every incremental, moderate and monumental action this board has taken since its inception,” Brad Poiriez, MDAQMD Executive Director, said at the Jan. 23 MDAQMD Governing Board meeting. “She’s had a storied and endearing demeanor sitting on this board and it’s a quality that’s helped this board be able to navigate through a lot of difficult issues. She’s done that with poise and tact and I know I’ve appreciated it as well as I’m sure the rest of the board members that have worked with her.”
During a presentation to her at the January meeting, Riordan said she had mixed emotions as she prepared to the leave the MDAQMD board, but she called it “the right time” to finish up her service.
“I have such confidence in this board, our APCO, and our wonderful staff, you just are at the pinnacle of I think real accomplishment,” Riordan said. “We obviously need to continue to work toward clean air and economic stability our here in our Mojave district. I recognize you’re going to have a lot of challenges (but) you’re absolutely at the top of your game and that’s how I feel about this board and about this staff right now, you just could not be better off.”
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