Today, the U.S. House of Representatives included wilderness and wild and scenic river designations in the Los Padres National Forest and Carrizo Plain National Monument in must-pass legislation by amending the National Defense Authorization Act to include the Central Coast Heritage Protection Act.
Included in this pending legislation are over 250 acres of the Pine Mountain Ridge/Reyes Peak logging and chaparral clearance plan proposed by the Forest Service last month. Mechanized activities such as logging, mastication, and temporary road building are not allowed in lands protected by the Wilderness Act without a thorough environmental assessment. The Forest Service is currently seeking to avoid the preparation of such studies and meaningful public involvement through the use of loopholes called “categorical exclusions.”
The amendment passed the US House of Representatives this morning on a bipartisan vote of 234-278. The 740 billion dollar defense bill, that would also give troops a 3% pay raise and remove Confederate names from military bases, passed later in the afternoon. The House and Senate will now negotiate their respective bills to arrive at a final set of amendments after the August recess.
The Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, which passed the House in February, is before the Senate within the PUBLIC Lands Act, introduced by Senator Harris. The Senate bill is not expected to advance before the election.
“With centuries-old trees on the chopping block, it’s even more critical that these lands receive the protection they deserve,” said Los Padres ForestWatch director of advocacy Rebecca August. “What the House has done, by inserting the bill into must-pass legislation, is force the Senate’s consideration. Protection under the Wild and Scenic River and Wilderness Acts has just become much more likely this year.”
In total, the bill would protect more than 245,000 acres of public land in Santa Barbara, Ventura, and San Luis Obispo counties. It also safeguards 159 miles of wild and scenic rivers, establishes two scenic areas encompassing 34,500 acres, and establishes a 400-mile Condor National Recreation Trail from Big Sur to the Los Angeles County line. View an interactive map [coming soon] of the lands, rivers, and trails that will be protected by the bill once it becomes law.
The legislation is the product of years of discussion and negotiation that began in 2009 when ForestWatch teamed up with The Wilderness Society and the California Wilderness Coalition to identify lands in need of additional protection. The last wilderness bill for the Los Padres National Forest was signed into law in 1992, nearly 28 years ago.
To read the Central Coast Wild Heritage coalition press release, click here.
To take action to protect Pine Mountain Ridge and threatened proposed wilderness go to LPFW.org/pine
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