A prominent piece of California desert between Joshua Tree National Park and the Salton Sea is finally set to become a federally protected national monument this week.

President Joe Biden will officially designate Chuckwalla National Monument while on a confirmed trip to the eastern Coachella Valley region on Tuesday. Once official, the national monument designation will provide additional protections for over 620,000 acres of existing public lands across a broad swath of the desert that starts just south of Joshua Tree National Park and Interstate 10, stretching eastward nearly to the Colorado River.

Chuckwalla National Monument will protect culturally important landscapes of several Native American tribes in the area, provide much-needed outdoor recreation opportunities in a region with limited park space, and safeguard habitats for desert wildlife and plants. These protections come as the inland Southern California desert is increasingly seeing large-scale solar development; supporters of the national monument say the protections are complementary to renewable energy development in the region.

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Hikers climb into the Ladder Canyon trail at Painted Canyon in the Mecca Hills Wilderness, Oct. 13, 2022.

FILE: A zebra-tailed lizard basking in the sun to regulate its body temperature at Chiriaco Summit near Joshua Tree National Park and Desert Center on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022.

FILE: A sulphur butterfly draws nectar from a desert lavender at Painted Canyon in the Mecca Hills Wilderness near the community of Mecca on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022.

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“By designating this new national monument, President........

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