Letter thanking House of Representatives for passing the Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act

We recently signed onto a letter to Members of Congress in support of protecting nearly 1.5 million acres as Wilderness, including the Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

Conservation Northwest proudly supports the Wild Olympics Campaign to protect 126,000 acres of mountains and forests on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula as wilderness, while also conserving 19 rivers and their tributaries under the federal Wild & Scenic Rivers Act.

We’ve long been a leader on the Olympic Peninsula, from protecting old-growth forests and conserving State Trust lands for marbled murrelets, spotted owls and other wildlife, to reintroducing fishers after their extirpation. Most recently, we’ve been strengthening local partnerships through our Cascades to Olympics (C2O) program, which works restore habitat and improve wildlife connectivity between Washington’s Cascade Range and the Olympic Peninsula.

The Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 2019 will support our C2O program by  permanently protecting critical fish and wildlife habitat that will enhance connectivity for wildlife moving across the landscape including elk, fishers, cougars, black bears, and amphibians, while also offering pathways for some species to more easily adapt to climate change.  Furthermore, this act can safeguard sources of clean water for local communities and increase opportunities for outdoor recreation. 

March 17, 2021 –View PDF

Letter thanking House of Representatives for passing Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act

Conservation Northwest * California League of Conservation Voters * Californians for Western Wilderness * Conservation Colorado * Conservation Lands Foundation * Environment America * Environment California * Environment Colorado * Environment Washington * Environmental Protection Information Center * Hispanic Access Foundation * Inland Ocean Coalition * Klamath Forest Alliance * League of Conservation Voters * Sierra Club Alaska * Soda Mountain Wilderness Council * Southern Environmental Law Center * The Wilderness Society * Tuleyome * Western Watersheds Project

Dear Speaker Pelosi, Chair Grijalva, Representatives DeGette, Neguse, Kilmer, Schiff, Carbajal, Huffman and Chu,

Thank you for your leadership in introducing and passing the Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act. This important move to protect 1.49 million acres of public land as wilderness and to add more than 1,000 river miles into the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System is a big step toward protecting 30 percent of United State lands and waters by 2030. Further, this legislation ensures that iconic landscapes like the Grand Canyon are permanently protected for future generations of Americans.

America is running short on nature. Every minute, we lose two football fields worth of forest, meadow, grassland, desert, beachfront, riverside or wetland. There are 3 billion fewer birds in North America than there were in 1970. There are far too many iconic animals native to our beautiful stretch of the planet that are now endangered or threatened. The Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act is an important step in reversing this trend.

Safeguarding our special places is widely supported by Americans of all stripes, with 4 out of 5 voters in favor of protecting more nature. And as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, more Americans have sought recreation opportunities and peace of mind in America’s great outdoors.

We are thankful to have champions like you in Congress fighting to protect our public lands. We’re thrilled that the final vote attracted support from both sides of the aisle. And we look forward to continuing to work with you and your staff to protect more nature.

Sincerely,

California League of Conservation Voters
Californians for Western Wilderness
Conservation Colorado
Conservation Lands Foundation
Conservation Northwest
Environment America
Environment California
Environment Colorado
Environment Washington
Environmental Protection Information Center
Hispanic Access Foundation
Inland Ocean Coalition
Klamath Forest Alliance
League of Conservation Voters
Sierra Club Alaska
Soda Mountain Wilderness Council
Southern Environmental Law Center
The Wilderness Society
Tuleyome
Western Watersheds Project

Read our FULL ENDORSEMENT for the Wild Olympics Wilderness & Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, or learn more about our CASCADES TO OLYMPICS program.