On this edition of Your Call’s One Planet Series, we discuss the impacts of climate change on Joshua trees. By 2100, scientists predict that Joshua Tree National Park will lose almost all of its Joshua tree habitat to climate change.
To protect and ensure a future for these longtime residents of the desert, California enacted The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act. According to the Los Angeles Times, the new law prohibits killing or removing the trees without a permit, tasks state wildlife authorities with developing and implementing a conservation plan for the species by 2024, and creates a fund to acquire and manage suitable habitat.
Guests:
Brendan Cummings, conservation director of the Center for Biological Diversity
Dr. Cameron Barrows, professor emeritus and research ecologist at UC Riverside
Web Resources:
The Center for Biological Diversity: California Law Permanently Protects Joshua Trees
LA Times: Witness to the devastation in Joshua Tree National Park
The Guardian: ‘Like witnessing a birth in a morgue’: the volunteers working to save the Joshua trees