About

The Mojave Desert Sentinel Landscape in California covers about 3.5 million acres of the western Mojave Desert and is located north of Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. The partnership includes five military installations: the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center, National Training Center Fort Irwin, Edwards Air Force Base, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, and Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow. It encompasses multi-mission public lands and over 40 protected species, including the Mojave desert tortoise and western Joshua tree. The presence of impacted protected species and natural resources off-installation limit the ability of both the military and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to test, research, train, and operate on the additional 2.8 million acres of military installations that surround the sentinel landscape. The Mojave Desert Sentinel Landscape unites a broad coalition of state, federal, tribal, county, local, and non-governmental partners to tackle challenges from incompatible development and climate change. Key objectives of the landscape partners include recovering threatened, endangered or sensitive species; restoring habitat and ecosystem function by creating species corridors and improving soil health; and managing watersheds to build resilience to a warmer, more arid climate. These efforts support the evolving needs of the Department of Defense (DOD) missions in the region and protect the desert’s vulnerable soil and water resources, native vegetation, and working lands.