Joshua Tree National Park will close Thursday for cleanup operations/Kurt Repanshek file
Editor's note: This updates the caption of the downed Joshua tree to reflect that park officials later concluded the tree had been cut down prior to the government shutdown.
Illegal roads, cut down Joshua trees, and damaged federal property, along with the need to clean up garbage, prompted Joshua Tree National Park Superintendent David Smith to announce Tuesday that the park would close indefinitely on Thursday to address those impacts incurred during the ongoing partial government shutdown.
“The park will be closed until I can ensure that resources inside the park are protected," Smith said during a short phone call. "We’re hoping that the shutdown will be over soon."
While the closure will take effect 8 a.m. Thursday, the superintendent could not say how long it would last. Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt has directed the National Park Service to use fee revenues brought in under the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act to pay for cleanup and additional law enforcement personnel. Smith said that while his park normally takes in about $9 million a year, most of that has been committed to projects. Staff was working to see how much in unobligated funds remained.
On February 1, just over three weeks after this story broke, Joshua Tree officials said the tree had been cut down prior to the partial government shutdown/NPS
Joshua Tree is a geologic showcase that is a climber's gymnasium, one that offers two different desert settings. Straddling the geographic divide that splits the Mojave Desert from an element of the Sonoran Desert, the park located about two hours east of Los Angeles in Southern California is both a day tripper's paradise and an adventurer's escape. The cooler winter months are the busiest in the park, which has made the task of preventing damage with a handful of rangers during the ongoing shutdown extremely difficult.
Last week park staff closed its campgrounds to overnight use because of sanitation problems, but many visitors ignored that closure. With just eight law enforcement rangers working during the partial government shutdown it was impossible to cover all areas of the park, which is about the size of Delaware.
"There are about a dozen instances of extensive vehicle traffic off roads and in some cases into wilderness," Smith replied when asked about the damage in the park. "We have two new roads that were created inside the park. We had destruction of government property with the cutting of chains and locks for people to access campgrounds. We’ve never seen this level of out-of-bounds camping. Every day use area was occupied every evening.
"Joshua trees were actually cut down in order to make new roads.”
Since the National Park Service was told to keep as many units of the National Park System open as possible during the partial government shutdown, but only with essential personnel, many have struggled with skeleton contingents of law enforcement rangers. With no maintenance crews to collect trash or maintain restrooms, and no budget to pay for outside help, many parks have been blighted by litter and human waste. There have been reports of illegal off-road travel, metal detecting on battlefields in the park system, and damage to resources.
Following Bernhardt's directive to use fee revenues, park staff across the country was busy seeing how much was available.
The new roads at Joshua Tree didn't run for miles, but rather jogged around gates to gain access in many cases, according to the superintendent.
“It’s short spurts for people to get around gates for the most part. They would just go out into the country, and then once 20 or 30 cars would go over it you would essentially have a new road created in pristine desert,” he said.
Illegal campsite in Joshua Tree National Park/NPS
One place that saw traffic was around Joshua Tree's Live Oak area, which is not far from the north entrance to the park.
“We had some pretty extensive four-wheel driving around the entire area to access probably our most significant tree in the park," Smith said. "We have this hybrid live oak tree that is deciduous. It is one of our kind of iconic trees inside the park. People were driving to it and camping under it. Through the virgin desert to get to this location. That would probably be a quarter-mile or so around the rock formation that is there.”
The superintendent said there also were instances of graffiti in the park this past week. Park officials were identifying additional staff and resources needed to address immediate maintenance and sanitation issues.
Monitoring a park the size of Joshua Tree, which covers 1,235 square miles and has about 20 different entrances due to dirt roads that ring the park, is extremely difficult with just eight law enforcement rangers. Were it not for the shutdown, there would have been more than 100 other "sets of eyes" to help keep an eye on visitor behavior, the superintendent said.
"We have 120 employees in the park, plus 30 associates that work for Great Basin Institute, the majority of whom are in the park every day," he said. "Those are the folks that are in the campgrounds and in the day-use areas and doing science. So you’ve got 100 sets of eyes in the park every day with folks contacting visitors."
Law enforcement rangers were to continue to patrol the park and enforce the closure until park staff completes the necessary cleanup and park protection measures.
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Comments
Whewre are all those "good guys with guns" when they're needed? Environmental terrorism, is what this is.
This is vandalism alright, but when did it happen? Not in the last few weeks, that’s for sure. There are no visible wood chips from the cutting and the exposed inner wood from the cut is bleached out from the sun. I know it’s the hot desert sun, but this tree has been laying there for a while. Fake news trying to blame this vandalism on the government shutdown.
y_p_w--
I was trying to add facts to the thread. That last comment was pointing out to Luke & others that while you can't go out and dig one up, Joshua Trees can and are used for landscaping in Las Vegas and Phoenix as well as across the Mojave Desert, where they're much more appropriate than a lawn.
I'm done with this thread: overtaken by un-registered drive-by commentators shouting fake news while ignorant of what Joshua Trees look like. I wish I were confident that they all at least share our love for our (all of our) National Parks like ecbuck, Al, SmokiesBackpacker, and other regulars I often disagree with on this site.
In the chaotic aftermath of 2011 earthquake & tsunami, Japanese citizens still maintained societal cohesion & community mores. In times of desperation, respect for one another extended in such ways that not even vending machines were raided. I can't imagine Americans acting anywhere close to that level of dignity.
To me the fallen tree looks more like it was snapped off. Possibly by a cable or winch.
American exceptionalism in action.
kcs503 - I think you are confused. The House passed a funding bill- without a single Dem vote. It was brought to the Senate and Mitch - who is far from my "best boy" - brought it up to vote and it failed with all Dem votes being negative. This shut down is on your "best boys".
President Trump said he took full responsibility for the shutdown. It was filmed and broadcast on every news station, including Fox. I take the president at his word; it is he who has drawn the line in the sand.(During his campaign, he said Mexico would pay for the wall. That, too, is recorded on film and easily available. He did NOT say it would be paid for indirectly via a trade agreement with Mexico that has yet to be signed.)
I have always assumed that those of us reading Traveler are lovers of nature and the outdoors and parks. We have different political philosophies and opinions on HOW to operate a park system, but I can't imagine anyone on here just dismissing reports of park damage as fake news! We all know about morons who vandalize parks -- grafitti, carving initials, stealing petrified wood, etc. -- when park security is at full force. Why is it so hard to believe that many more morons will go hog-wild (apologies to the swine family) when they know they won't get caught?
What we really need to worry about is the tightening in many government agencies of Freedom of Information actions. Without open records and open meetings, you will get only what those in charge at the moment want you to get. Which is fine if those in charge happen to be to your liking. But what if the "other guys" take charge?
Democracy dies in darkness.
ecbuck - I know you are confused. Congress passed a bill a year ago. Trump was going to sign it. Then his handlers at Fox told him not to. It's been down hill from there. Fast foward to mid December. Congress passed a bill, but Trump refused to sign it because it didn't have enough money for his pet wall. McConnell got all ego-tripped when the Dems took over the House. The House right now has two bills to reopen the government, but McConnell won't even let them go to the floor of the Senate for a vote. Four days ago McConnell blocked a Senate bill to reopen the government, just because it was written by Dems. McConnell won't push for even a republican bill, he hates the democrats so much, because he thinks Trump "might" not sign it. This is all on McConnell when he blocks bills. It's all on Trump and McConnell when Trump refuses to sign a bill. It's the same as a veto, so Congress can override it if they have enough votes. But McConnell won't allow that. Those are YOUR best boys. I'm tired of reading articles yet another one of our parks being vandalized and destroyed by humans who have become animals. I'd like to plan a trip to Joshua Tree by mid-March, but as long as Trump keeps the government shut down, I won't. He threatens a shutdown for months or years.
I haven't been following politics since last summer but last I checked the federal government was operating under a series of contiuing resolutions. Hasn't it been years since an actual budget has been submitted by the administration,passed by congress and signed by the president?
i want to know if Joshua tree allows ANY OFF ROAD OR 4 wheelers or ATVs in the park during regular days. Surely banning these will help. Additionally, park permits should include statements which underscore the illegal passage into closed for vehicles policy. Violators will be prosecuted. Bottom line, campers will violate rules at any time given opportunity. The cost should be great if caught, and the violators should PAY. Sadly, many people turn these incidents into political opportunities, rather than making it a time to sound off for improved camper ethics.
President Trump passed a law within weeks of becoming president fo allot more funds to help fix the old unkempt parks back to a safe environment also he raised the cost of the lifetime NP card to $80 for seniors to be used for improvements. He is for improvements and I love these parks. They needed this.. so please blame the thugs not the fixer
Karen -
Sorry but he hasn't "fixed" anything in the parks. From the point of view of most of us out here, HE is the thug.
Joshua Tree NP has unfortunately become a casualty from Trump's Shutdown. . Anyone who
believes in conservation and our national park system must become a "steward" of our national park
system and vow to support the parks, to elect good leaders (not bad ones)...and to end the mess
created by the current Administration thru ts bad policies and total disregard for the public welfare .
Submitted by Nancy in Texas on January 15, 2019 - 12:26pm.
i want to know if Joshua tree allows ANY OFF ROAD OR 4 wheelers or ATVs in the park during regular days. Surely banning these will help. Additionally, park permits should include statements which underscore the illegal passage into closed for vehicles policy. Violators will be prosecuted. Bottom line, campers will violate rules at any time given opportunity. The cost should be great if caught, and the violators should PAY. Sadly, many people turn these incidents into political opportunities, rather than making it a time to sound off for improved camper ethics.
=====
Nancy, all of what you suggest already IS provided to visitors entering the park.
The problem is that when violators are caught, punishment is usuallly not enough to really catch their attention. It's NOT related to "political opportunities," because it's something that has been a challenge ever since the first day Yellowstone was established as a park. Unfortunately, some members of Congress and sometimes even the White House have used our parks as "political opportunities."
assuming the story is correct, I can only conclude that this park could use a big beautiful wall to protect it from illegal entry!
This tree was dead. I have over 50 Joshua's on my property. Been going 48 years. This tree has been on the ground a long time. Please post honest pics. If you don't people in the middle leave.
This won't make it to the comments, though. Deceptive site.
GREEN party registered, fyi. Be honest.
OK, Rob. Deceptive eniough to let you sneak right on through the censors and get your comment posted. New around here, I take it?
[edited for a spelling typo]
Anyone who thinks that tree was cut down has never cut down a tree. It might have been knocked over (meaning it was dead already), but it certainly was not cut.
Friends, stop wasting your time trying to convince people that this is yet another mess owed to the current tenant in the White House. THEY DON’T CARE. $1 million in lost entry fees during shutdown. For what? Art of the Deal?
In hindsight, Trump should have assigned marines from the Twenty Nine Palms base to guard the park. The sight of armed marines stationed at the entances, visitor centers and campgrounds would no doubt have discouraged anyone from driving around a gate or cutting a chain.
Yeah Pioneer, 1 million lost gate receipts and billions lost to illegals. For what? For security of our borders. Oh, and BTW, it was the Dems that voted not to fund the government not Trump.
Mr Kemp--
[[cut and paste from wikipedia]]
The Posse Comitatus Act is a United States federal law (18 U.S.C. § 1385, original at 20 Stat. 152) signed on June 18, 1878, by PresidentRutherford B. Hayes. The purpose of the act – in concert with the Insurrection Act of 1807 – is to limit the powers of the federal government in using federal military personnel to enforce domestic policies within the United States. It was passed as an amendment to an army appropriation bill following the end of Reconstruction and was updated in 1956 and 1981.
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