Algodones Dunes Lose Protection
The Bureau of Land Management finalized its Recreation Area Management Plan for the Imperial Sand Dunes (a.k.a. Algodones Dunes) last month, stripping nearly 40 square miles of fragile dune ecosystem of its area of critical environmental concern status and prioritizing motorized recreation over ecosystem sustainability. The decision is expected to imperil vast swaths of microphyll woodland and psammophytic scrub habitat, which host many rare plant and insect species, including many that are only found in the Algodones Dunes. Before BLM modified its management of the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area, off-highway vehicle (OHV) riders had unrestricted access to 137 square miles of the dunes, and limited access to 81 square miles, for a total recreation area almost 7 times larger than Manhattan. The new plan will expand the unrestricted OHV area to 199 square miles, and cut the protected habitat from 117 square miles to 54. The decision comes as land managers are still working