California Wildlife Agency Reveals Strategy to Safeguard Iconic Joshua Trees
Officials warn that Joshua trees are constantly at risk from human activities, climate change, and wildland fires.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has released a preliminary conservation blueprint to safeguard the iconic Joshua trees in the state from wildfires and urban expansion.
It also calls on all groups, including government bodies, businesses, and individuals, to reduce carbon emissions to help mitigate the effects of climate change on the species. The plan urges landowners, developers, and land managers to limit the impact of their activities on Joshua tree habitats.
Furthermore, the plan urges land managers and wildfire responders to take decisive action to combat and contain active wildfires in or near Western Joshua tree habitats.
Land managers are also encouraged to devise strategies to minimize damage when rehabilitating burnt areas in line with the plan.
In 2019, the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity petitioned for the western Joshua tree to be listed as a threatened species under California’s Endangered Species Act.
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“In many ways, it’s a good comprehensive plan of the things we need to do if the western Joshua tree is going to survive the very, very difficult decades ahead,” said Brendan Cummings, the center’s conservation director. “Assuming we can keep to a mid-level emissions trajectory, we have a very good chance of saving the species if all the things outlined in this plan are carried out. And primarily that’s doing what we can to protect as many of them as possible.”
The act mandated the development of a conservation plan in collaboration with government agencies, California Native American tribes, and the general public.
It also prohibited the removal or destruction of western Joshua trees without proper authorization and mandated that the CDFW submit an annual report on the plant’s conservation status to the California Fish and Game Commission.
CDFW officials aim to pinpoint priority conservation areas by December 2025 and safeguard 70 percent of those regions by 2033.
The tree plays a crucial role in California’s desert ecosystem, providing a home to various animals and insects, according to CDFW.
The primary threats to the species include human activities, climate change, and wildfires, as per the agency.
“Given the compounded threats to western Joshua tree and the species’ biology and specific habitat needs, there is significant concern about its long-term viability in California,” the agency stated in its preliminary plan. “Unless direct management measures are taken, the survival of the species will heavily depend on its ability to withstand ongoing habitat loss and adapt to the anticipated hotter and drier conditions due to climate change.”
Joshua trees burn in the York Fire in the Mojave National Preserve, Calif., on July 30, 2023. Ty O’Neil/AP Photo
To counter the continuous threats to the species, the plan stresses the need for thoughtful conservation efforts and strategic land management to enhance the western Joshua tree population in California.
The draft plan must undergo approval by the California Fish and Game Commission.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
