Washington, D.C. – Congressman Raúl M. Grijalva joined President Barack Obama at the White House today for the signing of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
Comprised of 164 bi-partisan bills, the Act designates more than 2 million acres of wilderness in nine states and establishes or expands several national park units, a new national monument, four new national conservation areas, more than 1,000 miles of national wild and scenic rivers, four new national trails and more.
The act includes several pieces of legislation introduced by Congressman Grijalva in both the 110th and 111th Congresses. The National Landscape Conservation System Act (NLCS) will codify the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 26 million acre National Landscape Conservation System. The Federal Lands Restoration Act will develop, select, and fund landscape-scale forest restoration projects on Federal lands.
“I am proud to have stood with President Obama for the signing of this important piece of legislation,” said Grijalva. “I’m especially proud that the bill will permanently establish the National Landscape Conservation System, which is an amazing, collection of land and waters. While this legislation will not change management of any particular unit of the System on the ground, it will put these places on the map to citizens of our country who may have no idea these places exist and will hopefully inspire generations of Americans for years to come.”
The NLCS will protect the most ecologically significant lands under the jurisdiction of the BLM. The first of its kind in 50 years, the NLCS consists of National Monuments, National Conservation Areas, Wilderness Areas, Wild and Scenic Rivers, National Scenic and Historic Trails.
In Arizona, the areas included in the NLCS are:
•Agua Fria National Monument
•Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument
•Ironwood Forest National Monument
•Sonoran Desert National Monument
•Vermillion Cliffs National Monument
•Gila Box Riparian National Conservation Area
•Las Cienegas National Conservation Area
•San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area
•Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
•47 Wilderness Areas
•2 Wilderness Study Areas