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# Report: SM Mountains threatened
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/report-sm-mountains-threatened/
- Published: 2008-04-12T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T19:14:24.000Z
- Author: Kevin Herrera
- Tags: local, Downtown, #archive-import

*Advocates say feds need to pony up to buy land*

DOWNTOWN The nation’s leading voice for national parks is calling on federal officials to set aside more money to purchase privately held land in the Santa Monica Mountains before residential development and agricultural operations destroy the ecological integrity of the park.

In a report released this week by the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), advocates for more park land said the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, the world’s largest urban national park, has an estimated $62 million worth of privately held land — around 25,000 acres — within its boundaries that needs to be acquired to protect watersheds, wildlife corridors and sensitive habitat areas for more than 1,000 native plants and 450 animal species.

Federal funding to purchase these private lands has been unavailable since 2000, and approximately 1,300 acres of private lands within the park are lost to development annually, the report states.

“If the current rate of development continues, all 70,000 acres of private lands within the park’s boundaries will be developed by 2062,” said Ron Sundergill, NPCA’s pacific regional director. “This will fragment sensitive habitat for large carnivores such as bobcats, coyotes, and mountain lions, whose survival in the park is already in jeopardy.”

Tight park budgets also prevent the National Park Service from properly managing Santa Monica Mountain’s natural features and archaeological treasures, and cause it to rely on volunteers to perform tasks that Park Service staff should be doing, such as patrolling the park and staffing the visitor center, but does-n’t have the resources to do, Sundergill said.

The recreation area’s base budget has declined by 10 percent annually in inflation-adjusted dollars since 1980, leading to cuts in educational programs for schools and park maintenance.

Federal officials are in the midst of budget discussions and the NPCA is hoping the report will draw more attention to the lack of funds necessary to complete the park, which is made up of a series of parcels owned by various entities, including the city and county of Los Angeles, the state and the federal government.

“The Park Service needs an infusion of financial support from Congress and the (Bush) Administration in order to carry out its mission of preserving and protecting this park while providing enjoyment and educational opportunities for residents of the greater Los Angeles area,” said Sundergill, who urged people to write letters, make phone calls and send e-mails to their representatives in Washington, D.C., in particular U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), who chairs the Subcommittee on the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, which oversees the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

The fund was established by Congress in 1965 and designates a portion of receipts from offshore oil and gas leases for state and local conservation, as well as for the protection of national treasures (parks, forest and wildlife areas). Money from that fund is used to acquire land.

The state is doing its part, said Woody Smeck, superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, which has a boundary of 153,00 acres that includes the entire city of Malibu.

“The state, because of bonds passed by voters, almost outspends the federal government 3 to1,” Smeck said. “We need to put forward and equitable effort.”

Funding for land purchases has all but dried up, Smeck said. In the 1980s and 1990s there was roughly $22 million a year available for land acquisition in the Santa Monica Mountains, but around 2000, the funding stopped, much of which had to do with a change in philosophy at the National Park Service under the Bush Administration. The philosophy now is to spend more money on maintaining parks already in the system instead of using that money to expand. There are currently $6 billion in repairs and upgrades that need to be made to improve conditions at national parks, said Smeck, who has served as superintendent of the Santa Monica Mountains for the last 15 years.

“The challenge for us is that (the Santa Monica Mountains) is a relatively new national park and is still being built and put together,” Smeck said. “To shut off all acquisition dollars hurts the new parks that are still in formation … Los Angeles deserves a great national park. We still have a lot to do here.”

A spokesman for Feinstein’s office said the senator has worked hard over the years to secure as much funding possible for preserving open space and protecting wildlife. Last year Feinstein helped increase the budget for land acquisition and conservation by more than $20 million.

Some have questioned whether or not large sums of money should be spent on acquiring privately-held lands within public parks when those lands are located in areas that could not possibly be developed.

Officials with the Parks Service said whether or not a parcel can be developed does not factor in to the decision on whether to acquire land. What is more important is whether the land has the potential to be an outdoor recreation area or connects habitats, or has some historic significance. Some sellers are more willing to part with their land than others too, which also plays a role.

Even if the land cannot be developed, it still must be purchased so that the public and animals can cross from one terrain to another, Smeck said.

Laura Plotkin, state Sen. Sheila Kuehl’s district director who serves on the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy on the senator’s behalf, said some will question if spending money on these lands is appropriate, but what critics must realize is that it if the land is not purchased now, the price will only go up later.

“Even if it does seem costly, it is still cheaper than its going to be if the land is developed,” Plotkin said.“The whole point is to save (this land).”

State Assemblymember Julia Brownley (D-Santa Monica), who also serves on the Santa Monica Conservancy, said she is concerned about the federal government’s lack of funding for land acquisition and pledged to do whatever she can to bring more privately-held land into the park system.

“The Santa Monica Mountains are always under threat, if not outright assault, by those who would destroy this fragile and unique ecosystem with development that belongs elsewhere,” Brownley said.“The land conservancies, trusts, and park agencies are constantly looking for opportunities to work with property owners, especially those whose land is critical to protect habitat, link wildlife corridors, align hiking trails, etc. Many come to understand the value that their property has toward the goal of enhancing the park, and become willing sellers as scarce public funds become available. Unfortunately, there are a few who buy up the most critical parcels and then callously use the threat of development to market them to park agencies for far above fair market value.

“We’re talking about private development within a National Recreation Area,” Brownley added. “As a legislative participant on the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, it’s been painful to see acquisition money dry up when the need is greatest.”

Sundergill said that proposed legislation such as America’s Historical and Natural Legacy Study Act (H.R. 3998), which was recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, would help. If passed by the U.S. Senate, the Park Service would be authorized to study the feasibility of significantly expanding the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, potentially doubling its size, and providing additional habitat for wildlife and recreation opportunities for visitors.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 12, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/041208.pdf?ref=smdp.com)