Listen here:
Last week’s (February 8, 2023) announcement out of Governor Gavin Newsom’s office of proposed legislation titled “The Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act” prompted the California Fish and Game Commission to again delay a decision on whether to list the species under the California Endangered Species Act.
Pending that decision Fish and Game has been on the hot seat with conservationists on one side and developers and construction trades on the other. The proposed Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act may offer the Fish and Game Commission a way to ease off the hot seat without getting burned.
Language in the proposed bill acknowledges the interests of the various parties involved. In its current draft, harm to the species is prohibited without a permit and payment of fees or other mitigation. That revenue would then be used for the preservation elsewhere at a landscape scale. It also calls for a permit template for renewals and faster approval of developments at the local level when payments are made and other conditions are met.
Far from over, the proposed legislation is vulnerable to any number of amendments or even defeat prior to final legislative action in the state capitol; that could be July, August, or even longer, ample time for focus to shift from the Fish and Game Commission even as the iconic tree retains protected status under the Endangered Species Act.
Full text of the proposed Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan (PDF link): https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/plants/Joshua-tree/pdfs/TrailerBill_Western-Joshua-Tree-Conservation-Act.pdf
