Development threatens park space

Rapid development jeopardizes the future of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, threatening up to 1,000 species of plant life and hundreds of animals, according to a report to be released today. Susan Abram in the Daily News.

Nearly 1,300 acres of private land within the recreation area is lost each year to development, which could add up to 70,000 lost acres by 2062 - a little less than half of the entire park, according to the National Parks Conservation Association, an advocacy group.

To protect the area, the government would have to buy some $62 million worth of private land, but the National Park Service hasn't had any funding for acquisition of land since 2000, according to the NPCA.