Four years after unveiling an ambitious plan to conserve 30% of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030, state officials on Monday announced that they are closing in on that target. Since the start of the so-called 30x30 Initiative , California has added nearly 1.5 million acres — or roughly 2,350 square miles — of conserved lands, according to a progress report from Gov.
Gavin Newsom and the California Natural Resources Agency. In all, the report shows that California has now conserved 25.2% of its lands and 16.
2% of its coastal waters with a little more than five years until the deadline. “In 2020, I signed an executive order to conserve 30% of lands and 30% of coastal waters in California by 2030,” Newsom said in a statement. “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.” The stated goals of the 30x30 initiative extend beyond conservation. The plan also seeks to help restore biodiversity, expand access to nature and help mitigate and build resilience to climate change.
The initiative kicked off in earnest in 2022 when officials released a detailed road map for the plan. The state added 631,000 acres between April of that year and May 2023, and has added an additional 861,000 acres since then, according to the report. “It’s great that we’re over the 25% threshold, and we also.