Conservation Program

The mission of the conservation program is to save native plant species and their habitats on public and private lands in California by advocating for the maximum protection of native plants and promoting science-based and ecologically-sound land management practices.

The Conservation Program staff and volunteers serve as advocates for science-based land management practices to conserve native plant species and their habitats on public and private lands in California. There are laws, regulations, and ordinances -- at all levels of government -- that are intended to protect plants. Some accomplish this goal, and we try to ensure they are used as intended. Others are less useful and we work with the appropriate jurisdiction or agency to re-examine and modify sections pertaining to plant issues. To achieve this mission, CNPS conservation work is primarily focused on:

• Regional Conservation Planning (e.g., Habitat Conservation Plans (HCP), Natural Community Conservation Plans (NCCP), General Plans for cities and counties, Forest plans for lands managed by the US Forest Service, Conservation area plans for lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management)
• Native Plant Conservation in Forest Environments
• Control of Invasive and Exotic Plants
• Policies and Regulations Supporting Native Plant Conservation
• Chapter Based Conservation Issues

Conservation Resources

March 2007 Conservation Program Report (53k PDF) - overview of the activities that the CNPS Conservation Program undertook in 2006 and describes what is ahead for 2007.

Legislative Activities -- Find current legislation involving plant issues as well as tips for action.

CNPS Policies and Guidelines -- A useful archive of CNPS documents including policies and guidelines.

Plants and Fire – Resources for understanding Southern California wild land fires and management solutions. (From the San Diego Chapter)

2007 Santa Cruz Conservation Conference Proceedings -- Reports and presentations from the September Chapter Council special conservation event.

2006 Arcata Conservation Conference Proceedings -- Reports and presentations from the September Chapter Council special conservation event.

CNPS East Bay Conservation Project Report (461k jpg) - 2005-2006

Conservation Issues Discussion Board -- A message board devoted to the discussion of plant and plant community conservation issues.

Conservation Organizations

Conservation Topic Archives

The Chapter Council finalized and passed a new Off-Road Vehicle Sign Policy (PDF 66k)

Critical Habitat Campaign - View updated information on the CNPS and the Center for Biological Diversity's campaign for designated critical habitat for eight imperiled plant species in San Diego, Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Inyo and Mono counties of southern and eastern California.

Desert Issues - What biome covers one-quarter of the state of California? The California deserts including the Mojave and the Colorado and the Great Basin. The fragile and unique floristics of the California deserts is a key concern of CNPS, where we support a variety of exciting projects.

Endangered Species Acts (ESA & CESA) -- The federal and state Endangered Species Acts are among our most important tools in the fight to conserve and restore California's native biological diversity.

Forestry/Oaks Issues -- Current issues and CNPS projects regarding conservation and management of hardwood and conifer forests on public and private lands. Visit this whole new subweb devoted entirely to forestry issues.

Grazing Issues -- Livestock grazing impacts more acres of wild native plant communities in California than any other activity. Livestock affect all aspects of native ecosystems from plant and animal species composition to water quality.

Invasive Plants -- Weeds are everywhere. Some of them are taking over otherwise natural areas. This page contains our invasive exotic plants issue statement and links to the California Invasive Plant Council (Cal-IPC) website.

Newhall Ranch -- This proposed project will have tremendous impacts on the natural and human environment. Your help with this fight is urgently needed.

NCCP-HCPs -- Natural Community Conservation Plans (NCCPs) and Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs) are rapidly becoming the preferred regulatory replacement for project-by-project environmental review and permitting. Learn more about the laws and potential pitfalls of these planning processes which are essentially streamlined endangered species take permitting.

UC Merced -- UC Merced: CNPS and seven other environmental organizations support the University of California’s decision to reduce the footprint and associated environmental impacts of the UC Merced campus.

Wetland Issues -- Wetlands are one of the most imperiled of California's natural resources. Rapid urban expansion and agricultural conversion threatened a habitat which is already reduce by historic land reclamation practices.