CNPS has been "at the table" through all these planning processes. Our comment letters include:
NECO:
NEMO:
WEMO:
Fort Irwin Expansion: The Fort Irwin National Training Center, located north of
Barstow, California is proposing an expansion to the southeast
and southwest of the existing fort of 134, 592 acres. They will
be doing tank training in the expansion area.
The western
expansion area is home to the Mojave desert endemic – Lane
Mountain milkvetch (Astragalus jaegerianus). This species was listed as endangered in 1998 under
the Federal Endangered Species Act, due to low population
numbers (approximately 50 individuals). Subsequently, the Army
has performed many surveys for the species and identified a
greater number of individuals (approximately 5000 individuals).
Unfortunately, a large percentage of them occur in the proposed
expansion area of Fort Irwin. Even worse, the plants prefer the
tops of rolling hills, which are readily accessible to the tank
training. Although CNPS does not oppose a strong military, our
concern with the proposed expansion of THIS military training
facility is its potential to eliminate the Lane Mountain milkvetch from the planet.
For more
information on the expansion: http://www.fortirwinlandexpansion.com/
CNPS has
been opposing any expansion that would threaten the Lane
Mountain Milkvetch or any other rare plants/community. Our
comments include:
Additional information and comment letters on the Lane Mountain Milkvetch include:
Current Desert Conservation Committee Projects
The Desert Conservation Committee is a group of CNPS members
with an affinity and love of the Callifornia deserts. This group
is made up of members from a variety of CNPS chapters, and who
meet regularly for field trips and plant surveys and strategy
meetings to ensure desert conservation.
Their projects include:
Vertical Veg: The objective of Project Vertical Veg
was to develop a long-term vegetation inventory and monitoring
(I&M) system for high visitor use areas within Joshua Tree
National Park through a community partnership approach. We
addressed human impacts on cryptobiotic soil crusts and plant
cover in relation to rocky outcrops that are popular climbing
areas. Related management issues include: (1) a need to manage
social trails, (2) a lack of baseline data and a system for
long-term monitoring of soil and vegetation adjacent to boulder
formations, (3) a lack of outreach to the climbing community
regarding resource impact issues, (4) the need for baseline data
on park species of concern, and (5) the need for baseline data
on exotic plant species. The I&M system is based on
stratified random sampling using large (1000 m2), multi-scale
plots for collection of soils and vegetation data. In 1999, 30
plots were established. We encountered 124 native plant species
(6 are of concern), and 8 exotic plant species. Overall, native
vegetation and cryptobiotic soil crusts were negatively affected
by disturbance. However, simple delineation of trails and the
development of outreach materials on minimizing visitor impacts
hold great potential to reduce negative impacts. This report
recommends that Park Managers continue to monitor vegetation and
soil crusts, work closely with Park users, and modify management
as necessary to insure the protection of plant and soil
resources. Report: Vertical Veg Final Report (PDF, 1Mb)
Rare Mint in a Rock Climbing Mecca: In cooperation
with Joshua Tree National Park, and generously funded by the
National Fish And Wildlife Foundation, the CNPS and Joshua Tree
National Park modeled and ground-truthed occurrences of a rare
mint (Monardella robisonii) in the Park. This species was
known from fewer than 10 locations in the Park, and is found in
the bouldery habitat that is popular for world-class
rock-climbing. By modeling and locating populations within these
areas, the Park is better able to manage popular rock climbs,
while minimizing damage to this rare species.
Algodones Dunes Monitoring: In cooperation with the
Bureau of Land Management and the Department of Fish and Game,
CNPS has participated in annual surveys since 1998 of monitoring
a suite of endemic plant species in the Algodones (also known as the Imperial Sand)
dunes, both in wilderness and in Off-Highway-Vehicle Open Areas.
The data is analyzed by the BLM and used
to make land management decisions. The management issues on the Algodones Dunes (also known as the Imperial Sand Dunes) is on-going. The monitored species include:
The BLM reports are found at:
http://www.ca.blm.gov/elcentro/algdunesmonitorstudy.html
Algodones Dunes plant
surveyors
Algodones Dunes
Advocacy
The CNPS
has also strongly advocated for plant conservation on the
Algodones Dunes, based on the best available science. The
multiple use mandate of the Bureau of Land Management sets up
user conflicts between conservation of the suite of rare plants
that only occur in California on the Algodones Dunes and the
Off-Road Vehicle Open Area, where vehicles can drive anywhere.
Our comment letters include:
Imperial Sand Dunes
Recreational Area Management Plan:
Additional information on Peirson’s milkvetch including
Critical Habitat:
Rare Plants on Public Grazing Allotments: In
cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management-California Desert
District, CNPS initiated a series of surveys on the status of
known rare plant populations on public grazing allotments.
Twenty-five populations of 16 different species were targeted in
the spring of 1998. Sixteen of the targeted populations were
found (64%), and three new populations were discovered. Over one
hundred known populations still need to be surveyed for during
the appropriate season. CNPS is revisiting a number of selected
populations to establish population trends.
Spring
Beauty (Linanthus bellus) – a rare plant
Native Vegetation Pilot Project (NVPP): Livestock have
grazed on California deserts for over 100 years, but no
scientific studies have ever been conducted to assess the
effects of grazing on desert ecological processes. The Native
Vegetation Pilot Project will collect scientific data
currently lacking in an effort to assess grazing impacts. Seven
key tasks have been identified and CNPS and the BLM have signed
a Memorandum of Understanding to support the NVPP.
Additional Information
CNPS Policy for
Hot Desert Grazing
Desert Issues Internet
Links
Dedicated to the Preservation of California Native Flora