According to a press release from the U.S. Department of the Interior, "Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne...convened the National Invasive Species Council (NISC) at which he oversaw the adoption of the new 2008-2012 National Invasive Species Management Plan developed collaboratively by 13 federal departments and agencies and their partners."
Like many regions in the West, the Morongo Basin is increasingly plagued by invasive plant species, which can lead to displacement of native species and ruinous wildfires.
The new Plan, which replaces the 2001 plan, will "focus federal efforts to prevent and control invasive species, which are defined as species that are nonnative or alien to a nation or region and that cause or are likely to cause harm to the economy, environment or human/animal health." The Plan is viewable as a pdf here.
Read more about the devastation caused by invasives in the West in the "The Beige Plague" in the Los Angeles Times.
FOR MORE INFO ON THIS TOPIC: See the Plant Life and Invasive Mustard pages of the MBCA Website. Also, see more posts on Plant Life and Fire on this blog.
