A new strategy is being planned to manage the rugged looking, but fragile Mojave desert in a way that will save the threatened desert tortoise and protect native biodiversity , but also allow economic and recreational use of the resources.
Local, state and federal agencies coor-dinated by the Bureau of Land Management have proposed a comprehensive plan to manage a 9.4 million-acre area of the West Mojave bioregion that covers much of southeastern California.
Despite its sturdy appearance, the natural desert habitat is being lost to activities, such as mining, grazing, subdividing and recreation. Highways, pipelines, and power lines crisscrossing this massive ecosystem have fragmented the habitat of the tortoise, Mohave ground squirrel, and many other species that inhabit the region.
The desert tortoise the California State Reptile is found in California, Nevada, Arizona and Utah in terrain below 4,500 feet altitude that aren't too steep or too hot and dry. Although it can live for more than 100 years, the tortoise usually doesn't lay eggs until about age 25, and only 1 percent of tortoises born in the wild will reach maturity. The tortoise is particularly vulnerable to vandalism, illegal collecting, predators, disease and drought.
Plan Covers One-Tenth of State
In 1989, the state of California listed the desert tortoise as threatened, and a
federal listing followed the next year. Difficulties created by the listing prompt
ed the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to discuss with the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service and California Department of Fish and Game a management
plan based on ecosystem considerations, regardless of land ownership.
The agencies began to work with local and state government, the military, and other federal agencies to prepare the West Mojave Coordinated Management Plan. It will serve as a blueprint for multi-species habitat conservation in an area covering almost one-tenth of California.
The plan not only will provide protection for the desert tortoise, but also will address the needs of the Mohave ground squirrel and more than 100 special status species found within the planning area.
"The plan addresses all the special status species on the premise that by protecting habitats and ecosystems, many species can be protected," said Alden Sievers, who leads the coordinated management planning effort for the BLM. "We will be more successful if we can find areas to designate for protection that meet the needs of many sensitive species plants, the tortoise, the ground squirrel and other animals than if we choose areas that are good for just one."
The planning area encompasses public and private land in portions of five counties: Kern, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Inyo; parts of Death Valley and Joshua Tree National Monuments; four military installations: China Lake Naval Weapons Center, Ft. Irwin National Training Center, Edwards Air Force Base, and Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Training Center; and 11 incorporated cities and towns, including Palmdale, Lancaster, Victorville, and Barstow.
The entire area covers approximately the western half of the Mojave bioregion, extending from the San Bernar dino Moun- tains on the south to Inyo County on the north, and from the Antelope Valley on the west to Twentynine Palms Marine Corps Training Center on the southeast. It is bisected by Interstate Highways 15 and 40, and State Highways 14, 395 and 58.
The plan and draft environmental impact statement on the plan are subject to a 90-day public review period beginning in March, and are scheduled for adoption by the participating agencies near the end of 1994.
"This is not a federal plan that is being imposed on local government. It is a plan being prepared by many agencies, including cities, counties, state and federal," Sievers said. "The plan would integrate local planning and zoning with habitat conservation needs. If we are successful, it will be to the benefit of each participating agency to adopt it."
Agencies that choose not to adopt the plan would continue to use the same cumbersome system that currently causes delays, expense, and paperwork.
"The bottom line is, by doing things on a project-by-project basis, projects are delayed. Local agencies feel they're not getting good service," said Rhonda Reed, Natural Heritage supervisor for the California Department of Fish and Game.
Defining acceptable procedures on a regional scale will enable plan partici pants to look at long-term preservation of species and biodiversity, and to engage in advance planning that will help avoid the need to list species, Reed said.
"People won't have to deal with three agencies that might not agree. When a local jurisdiction adopts the West Mojave plan, they will be adopting conditions that will be requirements of the permits issued by the Department of Fish and Game and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, or by the local agencies," Reed said. "We're hoping we can prevent communities from backing themselves into a corner, like suddenly finding an endangered plant where they want to put a freeway interchange. If they had known ahead of time, they might have been able to plan differently."
Dick Pearson, an Apple Valley councilman who represents participating towns and cities in a citizens group assisting with preparation of the manage ment plan, said it would streamline the permit process into "one-stop shopping" by allowing cities to issue permits, thereby avoiding duplicative applications at the state and federal levels.
"The savings in time will be really significant, and let's face it, time is money. Clearly, there are real benefits," Pearson said.
Desert cities are concerned about the survival of industries, such as mining of borax, gold, and rare earth minerals, and do not want them crippled by restrictions, Pearson said.
"Some people don't realize the mineral values out here. But mining is a major economic producer. The amount of revenue it generates is very significant," he said.
He acknowledges that the tortoise is becoming scarce in its desert habitat.
"When we first moved to Apple Valley, we had desert tortoises come through our back yard. They would come up to us like a pet. But I haven't seen any in some time. No one is denying it needs protection."
Balancing Land Uses
The plan envisions three types of "management zones" that will provide protection to varying degrees. "Preserve zones" would offer maximum protection for plants and animals. Protection also would be given in "managed-use zones," but in a manner that allows for other resource uses. A major portion of the preserve and managed-use zones would be federal land, especially public land managed by the BLM.
No protection would be given to plants and animals in "development zones," except through small "specialty preserves." Development zones would be those deemed unsuitable for species protection because of existing or potential development, or other existing land-use commitments, such as military maneuvers, industrial use, and recreational activity.
Specialty preserves areas of special biological value generally under 640 acres would be designated in both the development and managed-use zones. If land uses of the West Mojave plan should conflict with other federal designations, such as wilderness areas described in Sen. Dianne Feinstein's Desert Protection Act, the more restrictive classification would prevail.
Two-thirds of the land in the planning area - 6.3 million acres - belongs to the federal government, and one-third - 3 million acres - is privately owned.
"Whenever possible, public lands are managed for sustained yield in a manner that allows the land to be productive in the future, and this includes maintaining habitat to support viable populations of plant and animal species," Sievers said. "Multiple use of public lands is a balance between using the land and its resources, and maintaining species and biodiversity."
The West Mojave plan will be consistent with strategies contained in the Desert Tortoise Recovery Plan being prepared by the Fish and Wildlife Service for the four-state region.
Implementation of the plan will be funded through a combination of mitigation fees paid as a compensation for habitat loss, state and federal appropriations, and other sources, Sievers said.
Once adopted, the West Mojave plan will be subject to periodic review and ammendment , so that it can remain pertinent to the needs of the participating agencies.
For additional information, or to receive a copy of the draft plan, write to: West Mojave Plan, 150 Coolwater Lane, Barstow, CA 92311. You may also call 619-356-2729.