A new agreement between environmental organizations and Southern California developers will provide long-term protections for the ancient Jurupa Oak, believed to be the oldest known living oak tree in the world.
The settlement, announced Tuesday, preserves nearly 55 acres of open space surrounding the rare Palmer’s oak in Jurupa Valley while allowing a large-scale residential and commercial development project to continue under revised conditions.
Under the agreement, the protective buffer surrounding the oak will more than double from 450 feet to 1,000 feet. Conservation groups said the expanded buffer will help reduce impacts from nearby construction and preserve habitat for local wildlife.
Known as the “Jurupa Oak,” the plant is not a traditional single-trunk tree but a sprawling shrub-like clone estimated to be at least 13,000 years old. Stretching nearly 80 feet across, it is considered the oldest known living plant in California and among the oldest living organisms on Earth.
Researchers from UC Riverside and UC Davis identified the ancient Palmer’s oak in 2009 while studying vegetation in the hills overlooking what is now Jurupa Valley. Scientists determined the oak is a surviving clone from a much older population that existed during the Pleistocene era, a prehistoric period that ended more than 11,000 years ago.
Their findings were later published in the research paper titled “A Pleistocene Clone of Palmer’s Oak Persisting in Southern California.”
Although Palmer’s oak is native to California and not currently listed as endangered, conservationists have long argued that the Jurupa specimen is uniquely important because of its age and rarity.
“I’m relieved that we can steer development away from an oak that’s so special it can’t be found anywhere else in the world,” said Aruna Prabhala, senior attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity. “Our goal was to minimize risk to the Jurupa Oak, and this agreement accomplishes that while improving wildlife connectivity in the area.”
The revised agreement also reduces the overall footprint of the development project and creates an opportunity for environmental organizations or California Native American tribes to purchase an additional 54 acres nearby for conservation purposes.
Additional environmental safeguards included in the agreement call for reduced lighting, protective fencing around the oak and the use of native plants throughout wildlife corridors designed to support animal movement across the region.
The settlement follows legal action filed against the city of Jurupa Valley by the Center for Biological Diversity, the California Native Plant Society, the Endangered Habitats League and Friends of Riverside’s Hills.
The lawsuit challenged the city’s approval of a major development project that included plans for more than 1,500 homes, commercial buildings, schools, parks, an equestrian center and light industrial development near the oak.
Environmental groups argued the project failed to adequately address potential impacts to the ancient oak and surrounding habitat, alleging violations of the California Environmental Quality Act.
“Preserving the unique Palmer’s oak and the hillside that has allowed it to survive all these millennia was our primary goal,” said Len Nunney of Friends of Riverside’s Hills. “Adding protected open space and a wildlife corridor connected to hundreds of acres of conserved land will help preserve a viable ecosystem in the area.”
As part of the agreement, the environmental organizations agreed not to pursue additional legal challenges against the revised development proposal.
