90 Miles from Needles: the Desert Protection Podcast

In late 2022, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey ordered the illegal construction of sections of ineffective but ecologically disastrous border wall made out of shipping containers. Then, in response to a federal order as he prepared to leave office, he ordered that wall torn down. Protesters on the ground helped in a big way, by forcing contractors to stop work on the project. We talk to Melissa Del Bosque, co-founder of the Border Chronicle project, a podcast and email newsletter reporting on border issues from Tucson, AZ. Our interview is accompanied by audio recorded on the scene of the illegal border container wall by Patrick Donnelly of the Center for Biological Diversity. Then, Chris and Alicia discuss upcoming episodes of the podcast and thank you listeners for your support.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Edwin P. (Phil) Pister, who died January 17, was a fisheries biologist long employed by the California Department of Fish and Game (now Fish and Wildlife.) He was involved in working to protect numerous fish in Eastern California and beyond, including the golden trout and the Devils Hole pupfish. We here republish an excerpt of Episode 7 from Season 1 that featured Phil talking about the moment when he literally, with his own two hands, saved the Owens pupfish from extinction.  Phil was also a founding member of the Desert Fishes Council, which you can join here. Thanks to the DFC for putting Phil's photo where we could swipe it. (Edited to add: Photo taken by John Wullschleger.) And thanks to Phil for everything.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Season 2! Chris and Alicia spend time communing with an 11,700-year-old creosote in the Mojave Desert, and discuss the species' importance as well as the ethics of treating millennia-old beings as disposable. King Clone's Wikipedia page is here.  If for some reason you want to learn more about creosote gall midges, you can start here.  You can learn more about the Western Solar PEIS, and find out how to make a comment, at this site. Comment deadline is currently February 6, so don't dawdle! If you're looking for the lin to Letters From the Desert, it's here.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The desert ironwood, Olneya tesota, is the basis of an entire ecosystem in the Sonoran desert. And this ecosystem includes people. Alicia and Chris hike in Ironwood Country and talk to the renowned Petey Mesquitey, host of Growing Native on KXCI in Tucson AZ, about this wonderful tree. We also take a little time to thank those of you who've made our first season a resounding success. Check us out at 90milesfromneedles.com to see what we have planned for 2023! Listen to Petey Mesquitey's Growing Native at https://kxci.org/programs/growing-native-with-petey-mesquitey/ This episode is dedicated in memory of 90 Miler and Patreon supporter Heather Hurley, who persuaded Chris 20 years ago that Boron, CA was a more interesting place than he had realized. We will miss you, friend.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The largest reptile in the Mojave faces threats ranging from predation to illegal collection to loss of habitat. But the desert tortoise has defenders. We talk to Tim Shields of Hardshell Labs  about his campaign to use 21st century tech to help the tortoises, and Luke Basulto of Saving Slowpoke (and the National Parks Conservation Association's California Desert team) about his work to bring the beast a new generation of supporters in communities of color.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On October 12, the California Fish and Game Commission postponed a decision yet again on whether to grant the western Joshua tree protection under the California Endangered Species Act. Chris and Alicia speak to Brendan Cummings of the Center for Biological Diversity about what happened, and what the future holds for the beleaguered tree. Plus news! Learn more about the Center for Biological Diversity: https://biologicaldiversity.org/ Listen to the California Fish and Game Commission's October 12 meeting: https://cal-span.org/meeting/cfg_20221012/ Read the Salt Lake Tribune article on Steven Lund's crackpot nuclear idea to "save" the Great Salt Lake: https://www.sltrib.com/news/environment/2022/10/19/another-wild-idea-save-great/ Comment on the Rough Hat Clark County solar project: https://www.blm.gov/press-release/blm-seeks-comments-proposed-rough-hat-clark-county-solar-project-near-pahrump Basin and Range Watch has more about Rough Hat Clark County solar: https://www.basinandrangewatch.org/RoughHat-Solar.html Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Solar in the built environment could meet America's need for electrical power. But still the desert is in the crosshairs. Public lands with intact habitat are coming under extreme threat because of the Inflation Reduction Act and subsidies for utility scale solar. Shannon Salter is the founder of Mojave Green, an environmental organization dedicated to protecting the Mojave Desert. https://mojavegreen.org/?page_id=149 She organized a protest event at the site of the Yellow Pine Solar Project in Pahrump Nevada, one of dozens of solar projects proposed along the route of the pending Green Link West transmission line. we were there with our recording equipment. Also, Chris and Alicia come upon a mystery in the Mojave Desert.  Take our reader survey at https://90milesfromneedles.com/survey Eplanning site for Bonnie Claire Lithium  https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2021595/510 More on the Piñon -Juniper study: https://phys.org/news/2022-10-pinyon-juniper-tree-species-declining-ranges.html Keep tabs on those frisky Devils Hole pupfish: https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/nature/devils-hole.htm Keep our podcast going! https://90milesfromneedles.com/patreon    Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're not going to be able to save the desert if we self-immolate. Alicia reads Chris the riot act about taking time to enjoy the desert without being preoccupied by saving it. He responds by heading to the Colorado River. Also, we are happy to report on a major blow to the fiendish Cadiz water mining project, and we read your letters. Well, one letter anyway.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Alicia takes on one of her personal bugbears: the endless supply of mylar balloons landing in the desert, choking wildlife and starting fires, just because people don't care what happens to their floating trash. Also, we subject Joshua Tree National Park superintendent David Smith to the Reddit Ask Me Anything treatment. Episode image, which is kinda on the nose if you ask us, via our pal Cyndi T. in Tucson. Find the Desert Balloon Project at https://www.facebook.com/desertballoonproject/ Check out jobs at Joshua Tree National Park: https://www.nps.gov/jotr/getinvolved/workwithus.htm Check out the JTNP Climbing Management Plan in progress: https://www.nps.gov/jotr/getinvolved/climbingplan.htmBecome a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts contend with record rainfalls, climate change and urban development are drying up the Great Salt Lake. We talk to David Smith of Joshua Tree National Park about floods in desert parks, and Zachary Frankel of Utah Rivers Council about saving the Salt Lake.Become a desert defender!: https://90milesfromneedles.com/donateSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.