Printable Version Tell a friend Download PDF Version

To download PDF version of this web page, right click the link and select "open in a new window" or "save target as."

Western Natural Resource Center - Sept./Oct. 2008

(National Wildlife Federation)

A coalition of environmental groups, private landowners, and developers are celebrating a historic land-use agreement for the 240,000 acre Tejon Ranch. The Planning and Conservation League (PCL), the California affiliate of National Wildlife Federation, is part of the coalition which actively negotiated for several years to save the ranch from development.The Tejon Ranch is the largest private landholding left in the state, located along Interstate 5 just north of Los Angeles. The unique ecosystem--eight times the size of San Francisco--is a diverse and biologically rich landscape that combines desert, mountain and valley habitat, and is a multi-layered wildlife corridor that is home to a wide variety of birds and wildlife, including the California condor and the kit fox. It encompasses parts of the Sierra Nevada, Mojave Desert, Coastal Range, and San Joaquin Valley -- the only place in California where four distinct ecological regions converge.

This precedent setting Conservation and Land Use Agreement ensures the land is protected and that the public will be granted access to this remarkable treasure. The 37-mile segment of the Pacific Crest trail will be rerouted to go through the ranch. Vast tracts of wilderness will be open to the public and will create a natural corridor that will help wildlife adapt to the changes to their habitat caused by global warming.

We would like to extend our gratitude to everyone involved in making sure that Tejon Ranch will remain a sanctuary for the plant and wildlife communities that thrive there. To learn more about Tejon Ranch, visit: http://www.tejonpreserve.com, and to learn more about The Planning and Conservation League, please visit their website: http://www.pcl.org