A report released yesterday (Tuesday) ranks Joshua Tree National Park as having some of the most polluted air of the country’s national parks. The National Parks Conservation Association graded 48 national parks on healthy air, visibility, and effects of climate change, and ranked Joshua Tree National Park as the fourth worst park, behind Sequoia, Kings Canyon, and the Everglades. Joshua Tree National Park received two Fs–one for polluted air, and the other for the effect of climate change on the park–and a C for visibility. The report explained that Joshua Tree regularly has air that is unhealthy for some visitors, and haze pollution throughout the park system cuts down visibility by an average of 50 miles.
In addition, Joshua Tree National Park is experiencing hotter and drier weather than ever before, which threatens the very existence of its old Joshua trees. Some experts believe that up to 90 percent of the park’s Joshua trees will die by the end of the century due to climate change. The National Parks Conservation Association says that unless air pollution standards are toughened, the air in Joshua Tree and other national parks will only get worse, not better. A link to the study can be found at http://www.npca.org/assets/pdf/NPCA-Polluted-Parks-July-2015.pdf
