CA Releases Final Pathway to 30x30 Strategy

Drakes Estero

California is working towards meeting its goals to protect biodiversity, increase climate resiliency, and expand access to natural resources with the California Biodiversity Collaborative’s 30x30 Initiative that seeks to conserve 30% of our state’s lands and waters by 2030. 

At the end of 2021, the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) released a draft strategy (Pathways to 30x30) for public review and input on how to meet the goals. EAC and a coastal environmental coalition commented on the draft, advocating for improved definitions of terms, to increase the scope of stakeholders for coastal working waters, update scientific criteria, and commit to achieving 30x30 goals with highly protected Marine Protected Areas. 

On Earth Day, the CNRA released its final report, Pathways to 30x30: Accelerating Conservation of California’s Nature. We were encouraged to see a few notable revisions in the final report, thanks to the advocacy of our coastal environmental coalition, including: 

  • The specification of biodiversity in the definition of a conserved area;

  • Listing environmental organizations and diverse ocean users as relevant stakeholder groups; and 

  • reference to the scientific consensus on the value of highly and fully protected areas. 

In the final report, the state lays out how California plans to reach its 30x30 goals through these 10 pathways:  

  1. Accelerating Regionally Led Conservation 

  2. Executing Strategic Land Acquisitions  

  3. Increasing Voluntary Conservation Easements 

  4. Enhancing Conservation of Existing Public Lands and Coastal Waters 

  5. Institutionalizing Advance Mitigation 

  6. Expanding and Accelerating Environmental Restoration and Stewardship 

  7. Strengthening Coordination Among Governments 

  8. Aligning Investments to Maximize Conservation Benefits 

  9. Advancing and Promoting Complementary Conservation Measures 

  10. Evaluating Conservation Outcomes and Adaptively Managing

The final report sets a pathway forward for the implementation of the plan to meet the goals of 30x30. There is still a lot of work for the public to engage in meaningful and equitable implementation. We will continue our engagement, including advocating for heightened conservation of appropriate places in our beloved coastal West Marin. 

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