Judge OKs Protections for 11 Million Acres of Desert
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RIVERSIDE — A judge has given final approval to an agreement between environmental activists and the federal government to protect a vast swath of land in southeast California, officials said Thursday.
Ending a lawsuit filed last year by the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and Public Employees for Ethical Responsibility, the agreement will impose immediate restrictions on the use of more than 11 million acres.
Among other components, the agreement bans grazing on the habitat of the desert tortoise, closes roads in the western Mojave Desert and bars off-road access in canyon areas near Death Valley.
It also requires the federal Bureau of Land Management to revise plans for preserving 24 endangered species in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Imperial, Inyo, Mono and Kern counties.
“This was in the public interest,” said Daniel Patterson, desert ecologist for the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s what we’ve all been working for.”
The 25-million-acre California Desert Conservation Area, including 11.5 million acres of BLM land, was created in 1976.
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