Joshua Tree National Park

joshua tree national park straddles southern california's to desert the hotter colorado desert of the southeastern tip of the state and the higher elevation mojave desert the nineteen ninety four desert protection act brought back more than two hundred thousand acres that had been removed from the monument in the nineteen fifties expanding the parks size by about forty percent with the promotion from national monument to park the number of annual visitors rose to around one point three million medicare national park raised in this area too i can't stand this hurts our is superintendent at joshua tree although management policies are basically the same just changing people's attitude about joshua tree national park enhanced long term protection on the east side of the party howard gross meals over a small flower nodding in the wings there's a yellow and so iowans desert danny lyon it's beautiful to lauren are at a spot in the center rises with the national parks conservation association he says joshua tree provide solitude and silence in an increasingly urbanize the world but he

says urban problems are plaguing the park this past year two thousand three hundred nearly forty days where ozone levels were so high that the elderly and young people from respiratory problems we're we're not to undertake outdoor activities and lots of people come to a park to do most of the smog blows in from the los angeles area that communities around the park also pollute the national parks conservation association was joshua tree as one of the country's most endangered parks gross says joshua tree is also under funded by a third and short staffed the park service shares these concerns on the north side of joshua tree joe's rt the park's head naturalist points out a grove of joshua trees he says they're important habitat red tailed hawks nesting on water and tribes use of his purges scott orioles northern asked him members yucca my lizards tied to joshua trees on this day the trees barely band in the strong gusts that but for them but they do look battered a fire has felt many and others are singed and

missing limbs park service botanist partially due says the park's signature joshua trees are threatened by an increase in fires many fueled by non native grasses like red roma ten states spread their rapidly in the remains standing says that material it stays around for a long time in that can carry fire red rome and other invasive plants thrive on disturbed soils but the park service also speculate that the air pollution could be nurturing the invaders joe's argue says it drops nitrogen into the desert nutrient poor soil native plants have not adapted to high levels of nitrogen and i'm used to that they're not waterproof take advantage of it so you bring in an exotic plants that is used to using nitrogen more effectively they have an advantage the park service and environmentalists are also worried about another kind of fertilization garbage year the tiny town of desert center the backside of some of joshua trees a rugged purple mountains crumble into larger movie or fans or slopes that

ease into a valley outside the park donna sharpie grows organic oh hold in the valley not far from where the los angeles county sanitation district may build a landfill it was built three sides of joshua tree national park will surround the world's largest garbage dump for talking over four thousand acres of thoughts about and support facilities you're talking forty million pounds of garbage a day every day for the next one hundred and seventeen years for pete and some researchers say the dam could cause some species to proliferate at the expense of others for example ravens which prey on juvenile desert tortoises darnell or with the sanitation district says the project was permitted after fifteen years of environmental review by state and federal agencies all reached the same conclusion that with the right mitigating measures the project can go for without any significant impact to the environment or to joshua tree

national the landfill is currently on hold no matter what happens with the dump refuse pollution and other problems associated with people aren't going away communities around the park are expecting rapid growth that may make the park more treasured but perhaps less of a jewel in joshua tree national park ill society all at nine point three kpcc