Newsom unveils bill to protect California’s climate-threatened Joshua tree

California Gov. Gavin Newsom this week proposed for the first time a bill that would protect the western Joshua tree, a native desert plant, and prohibit anyone from importing, exporting, selling or removing the species without a state permit.

The legislation, called the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act, comes after the California Fish and Game Commission failed to act on a petition from 2019 that sought to list the tree as threatened under the California Endangered Species Act.

The commission voted unanimously Wednesday to postpone its decision on the petition by the Center for Biological Diversity until Newsom’s proposed legislation is approved or rejected by the Legislature.

A rise in development and climate-related events such as drought and wildfires have threatened the western Joshua tree, an iconic and ecologically critical species located across the state’s desert region. Recent studies show that Joshua trees are dying off from hotter and drier conditions, and without state protections could be largely gone from the Joshua Tree National Park by the end of the century.

However, opponents of the petition have argued that listing the trees as threatened could hurt private property development and renewable energy projects planned for the area. Roughly half of the western Joshua tree’s range in California is on private land and most of the habitat is not currently protected from development.

The bill would require the department to prepare a conservation plan for the species by the end of next year, periodic reviews to confirm the effectiveness of the plan and consultations with impacted Native American tribes.

The department said that since the tree is so widespread across the public and private desert region, the permitting process for the species is more complex than for any species currently listed under the California Endangered Species Act.

Brendan Cummings, the Center for Biological Diversity’s conservation director and a Joshua Tree resident, called the trees “an irreplaceable and highly threatened part of California’s natural heritage.”

“We’re pleased the Newsom administration recognizes their importance and has proposed groundbreaking legislation to ensure these wonderful trees forever remain part of California’s Mojave Desert landscape,” Cummings said in a statement.