By SDCN Editor
Sacramento, CA–Governor Gavin Newsom Monday kicked off California Biodiversity Week with the release of the 2024 Annual Progress Report for the 30×30 Initiative – California’s commitment to conserve 30% of state lands and coastal waters by the year 2030.
The report shows that California is making significant progress toward this goal, with the state now having conserved 25.2% of its lands and 16.2% of its coastal waters.
Since the 30×30 effort started in 2022, California has added almost 1.5 million acres of 30×30 Conservation Areas—or roughly 2,350 square miles of conserved lands. And this year alone, 861,000 acres of conserved lands were added to 30×30 in California.
“In 2020, I signed an executive order to conserve 30% of lands and 30% of coastal waters in California by 2030. And four years into this effort, we’re on track to achieve this target, with over a quarter of our lands protected. We won’t stop working to protect California’s unparalleled natural beauty for generations to come,” stated Governor Gavin Newsom.
The increase in acreage this year includes areas that were newly conserved over the 12-month reporting period. It also includes acres where the state previously had insufficient data to consider their level of protection and management for biodiversity, but now is able to confirm the properties meet California’s strong 30×30 definition. The report can be accessed at resources.ca.gov.
This progress is a direct result of partnership and commitment of California leaders, the federal government, and the hard work of on-the-ground practitioners, land managers, tribal governments and communities. Major 30×30 milestones over the past year include:
California’s first-ever ancestral land return effort through the Tribal Nature-Based Solutions Grant Program, which provided $100 million in funding for the return of roughly 40,000 acres to indigenous communities.
Newsom credited the Biden administration for the expansion of two National Monuments – San Gabriel Mountains and Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monuments – enhancing protections for approximately 120,000 acres of federal lands.
And the roll-out of much of the almost $1.3 billion in Nature-Based Solution state funding that the Governor and the Legislature allocated over the last three years – acquiring and conserving properties, restoring habitat and much more. This funding will help California achieve its 30×30 conservation goals.
