NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – On Tuesday a joint resolution requesting that President Barack Obama designate the Berryessa Snow Mountain region as a national monument passed in the State Assembly.
The resolution, AJR4, was introduced by Assemblyman Bill Dodd and coauthored by Marc Levine and Jim Wood.
The joint resolution will now go to the Senate where it is coauthored by Senators Lois Wolk and Mike McGuire.
The Berryessa Snow Mountain region is renowned for its rich biological diversity, geologic features and wealth of recreational resources.
It encompasses more than 350,000 acres across Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Solano and Yolo counties.
“Permanently protecting this region will ensure that animals and plant life will continue to flourish and that future generations will be allowed to enjoy this area,” stated Dodd during his testimony. “The region’s geographical proximity to the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento makes it an excellent destination for outdoor recreation that is easily accessible to millions of Californians.”
A recent economic study released by the Winters Chamber of Commerce Studies shows that a national monument designation will be beneficial to the surrounding economies adding $50 million over five years.
Protected public lands are major contributors to our country’s $646 billion outdoor recreation economy.
In California more than half of all residents participate in outdoor recreation each year, supporting more than 700,000 jobs and generating more than $6 billion for the state’s economy.
Residents and tourists alike visit these public lands to enjoy stunning displays of nature; including California’s second-largest population of wintering bald eagles, wild tule elk, osprey, river otters, half the state’s dragonfly species, a huge variety of butterflies, a unique and rich geology of serpentine soils, and an array of rare and endemic plants found nowhere else on the planet.
Currently over 80,000 individuals, 200-plus business owners, five counties included within the designation and many surrounding cities, and the state of California support a national monument designation for the Berryessa Snow Mountain region.
Other supporters include conservation and outdoor recreationists, including hikers, mountain bikers, horseback riders, off-road recreation groups and sportsmen groups.
Supporters maintain that establishment of a national monument in the Berryessa Snow Mountain region will improve coordination between federal agencies, protect our natural resources, provide additional federal funding opportunities for conservation management, help with the eradication of invasive species and illegal marijuana grown on public lands, and provide opportunities for recreational enhancement.
State Assembly supports Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument
- Lake County News reports
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