A restoration project at the south end of California's Salton Sea is is being expanded thanks to a $70 million grant from the U.S. Bureau of.
Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** Expansion announced for California’s Salton Sea conservation project
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Thursday, October 17, 2024
Algae in a Salton Sea harbor. Photo: slworking2 ([link removed])
A restoration project at the south end of California's Salton Sea is is being expanded ([link removed]) thanks to a $70 million grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The expansion was announced at a groundbreaking ceremony for the Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) Project ([link removed]) , which aims to protect air quality and support wildlife by reducing exposed lakebed and restoring habitat. The first phase of the project covered 4,110 acres ([link removed]) at the southern end of the Salton Sea. The expansion ([link removed]) will add 750 acres, bringing the total project area to nearly 5,000 acres.
The Salton Sea has receded in recent years due to drought, climate change, and agricultural water use changes. The increasingly exposed lakebed releases toxic dust particles, contaminating air quality and threatening the local ecosystems. The SCH Project works ([link removed]) to restore wetland habitat and create areas that minimize fine particle emissions.
Interior Department signs three co-stewardship agreements with Alaska Tribes
The Department of the Interior signed three new co-stewardship agreements ([link removed]) with Alaska Native Tribes and Corporations. Two of the agreements promote efforts to protect salmon in the Yukon, Kuskokwim, and Norton Sound regions through the Department's Gravel to Gravel Keystone Initiative ([link removed]) , which incorporates Indigenous knowledge to improve the resiliency of ecosystems, communities, and the Pacific salmon population. The third agreement improves the management of easements providing access to public lands and waters across privately owned Ahtna lands.
** Quick hits
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Proposed Bahsahwahbee National Monument in the path of Western Solar Plan
Las Vegas Review-Journal ([link removed])
State and federal officials announce expansion of California’s Salton Sea conservation project
The Hill ([link removed]) | Imperial Valley Press ([link removed]) | KYMA ([link removed]) | News Channel 3 ([link removed])
State, federal partners announce new funding to boost cleanup at San Gabriel Mountains National Monument
Pasadena Now ([link removed]) | Sierra Sun Times ([link removed])
Trees and land absorbed almost no CO2 last year. Is nature’s carbon sink failing?
The Guardian ([link removed])
North American grasslands, sagebrush targeted for protection, investments
KUNR ([link removed]) | Billings Gazette ([link removed])
Montana unveils its plan for managing grizzly bears
Montana Free Press ([link removed])
Is national park lodging becoming unaffordable for average Americans?
National Parks Traveler ([link removed]\)
Rare comet you can see in the Colorado sky won't return for 80,000 years
CBS News ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” With just over half of the Great Plains grasslands remaining, every cut from the plow has significant consequences for wildlife, carbon storage, and clean water.”
—Martha Kauffman, World Wildlife Fund's Vice President of Northern Great Plains program, Billings Gazette ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@usinterior ([link removed])
Nestled near the foot of Mount Adams in Washington’s Cascades Range, Conboy Lake NWR is a scenic gem within the National Wildlife Refuge System. The refuge offers visitors diverse scenery and abundant recreational opportunities, such as hiking, birding and wildlife watching.
The Refuge System includes 570 national wildlife refuges and 38 wetland management districts that offer a peaceful escape to reconnect with nature. Ready to unplug and recharge? Find one near you, link in our bio.
Photo by Henry Kammetler
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