Hearing at Joshua Tree to Explore Effects of Climate Change

Washington, D.C. – In an effort to better understand how the National Park Service (NPS) and the new Administration are preparing for the impacts of climate change on federal lands, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, led by Chairman Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), will hold an oversight hearing at Joshua Tree National Park in California on "The Impact of Climate Change on America’s National Parks."

Of great concern to Joshua Tree National Park is the threat posed to its namesake species, the Joshua tree, by a warming climate. Other high profile park units have also been affected; damages include melting glaciers at Glacier National Park, dying forests at Rocky Mountain National Park, and flooding at Mount Rainier National Park.

Witnesses are expected to discuss current and anticipated impacts to resources in our National Parks as a result of climate change, and possible strategies for combating the effects of climate change on these lands.

The Subcommittee is conducting a series of hearings to explore the role of federal lands in combating and adapting to climate change; this field hearing is the second in the series and the first to focus on National Park Service lands and resources.

Subject
House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands
Oversight Field Hearing on "The Impact of Climate Change on America’s National Parks"

When
Tuesday, April 7, 2009, at 10 a.m. PST

Where
City Council chambers
6136 Adobe Road
Twentynine Palms, California
*Hearing site is adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park*

Witnesses
To Be Announced