Chuckwalla National Monument

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Our desert is incredibly rich in biodiversity, with each mountain range and valley home to unique plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. The proposed Chuckwalla National Monument and Joshua Tree National Park Expansion would protect and connect these ‘islands’ of diversity, creating vital climate refugia and building resilience in the face of warming temperatures, increased drought, and habitat loss.

Once designated, the proposed Chuckwalla National Monument will be the largest protected area of the unique Colorado Desert community, preserving hundreds of thousands of acres for the people, plants, and animals that call the California Deserts home.

What You Should Know

The draft boundary of the Chuckwalla National Monument is within the traditional homeland of the Cahuilla, Quechan, Serrano, Chemehuevi, and Mojave peoples. Designating the Chuckwalla National Monument in the eastern Coachella Valley will bring many opportunities and benefits to our community.

Community Benefits

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  • Honoring Culture

    The Chuckwalla National Monument will ensure the traditions, sacred sites, trails, and plant and animal relatives in this cultural landscape are protected in a manner that respects Tribal priorities and sovereignty.

  • Climate Resilience

    The Chuckwalla National Monument will protect wildlife corridors for the movement of animals and plants, and climate refugia to preserve islands of biodiversity in a changing environment. Undisturbed desert soils account for almost 10 percent of our state's carbon storage, capturing CO2 from the air and helping to avoid climate change. Alluvial fans channel flash floods to the desert floor and filter water into underground aquifers.

  • Protecting Wildlife

    The Chuckwalla National Monument will protect unique and rare desert plants such as the Mecca Aster, Orocopia Sage, and Chuckwalla Cholla, many found nowhere else on Earth

    Critical habitat for wildlife like the desert bighorn sheep, desert tortoise, burro deer, migratory birds, and many other imperiled species will also be preserved.

  • Equitable Access

    Permanently protecting the Chuckwalla National Monument is an opportunity to ensure these places are here for current and future generations to experience and enjoy.

    Free and low-cost recreational opportunities would continue to be available, and could be improved, especially near the communities of the Eastern Coachella Valley.

    Much of the proposed monument is only accessible via a network of designated off highway vehicle (OHV) routes. This access will continue once the monument is designated.

  • Benefiting Local Economy

    Protected landscapes provide economic benefits to surrounding communities by attracting tourism and improving quality of life.

    Studies have shown a 10% increase in businesses and 8.5% increase in jobs near protected areas in the western US.

    Joshua Tree National Park brings $121,857,000 to local economies, 1,512 jobs, and $60,065,000 in income annually. Designating Chuckwalla National Monument will bring these types of benefits to the Eastern Coachella Valley.

How can you help?

If having access to public lands, building climate resilience, and protecting cultural, historic, and wildlife areas in our desert are important to you, make your voice heard by signing our petition HERE.

Local community groups, clubs, and business owners can also express their support. Contact us for more info on how to submit a letter of support.

Contact your local government representatives (city council, county supervisors) and ask them to support our proposal officially via a formal resolution.

Our coalition reached a significant milestone in September 2023 when Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D., the representative for California District 25 where the proposed monument is located, introduced bill H.R. 5660 calling for the designation of Chuckwalla National Monument. In June of 2024, the Department of the Interior held a public meeting in Indio where more than 1,000 community members came out to support the designation of the monument by President Biden under the Antiquities Act.

No matter how the Monument comes to be, we are confident that together, we can make it a reality before the end of 2024!

Our Involvement

CactusToCloud Institute has been a member of the Protect California Deserts coalition since the Fall of 2021. Together with other local, regional, and national partners, we are working on protecting vital public lands in Riverside and Imperial Counties. These lands showcase diverse landscapes, and permanently protecting them is part of our vision for greater equity and inclusion in our desert and for building climate resilience in the Coachella Valley.

We are working to educate our community and build support for the monument. We bring our expertise in desert ecology and local perspective to the table and engage with local, state, federal, and tribal representatives, as well as the Coachella Valley community at large, both on land and in the air. Since we joined the coalition, we have helped our community discover the beauty of the desert by leading hikes in the proposal area, coordinating aerial tours with our friends at EcoFlight, and given dozens of virtual and in person presentations to community groups wanting to know more about the proposed Chuckwalla National Monument.

Our commitment to conservation goes beyond just protecting our environment. We're also passionate about investing in the future of our planet by empowering the next generation of conservationists. We hosted two participants in the Chuckwalla Youth Ambassador program, both graduates of our Nuestro Desierto California Naturalist course, who are receiving training and hands-on experience in protecting our public lands.

Consider supporting our advocacy efforts by making a donation to CactusToCloud. You'll help us continue advocating for the Chuckwalla National Monument in 2024, so we can work together to protect Our Desert, Nuestro Desierto, for all to enjoy. Thank you for making a positive impact!