FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 3, 2024
Contact: Sarah Hersh-Walker, 510-759-2921, sarah@fcpcommunications.com
POWER IN NATURE COALITION CELEBRATES NATIONAL MONUMENT EXPANSIONS, URGES PRESIDENT TO PROTECT ADDITIONAL PLACES IN CALIFORNIA
San Fernando and Sacramento, CA — Today, the Power In Nature Coalition celebrated the expansion of two national monuments in California. President Biden signed presidential proclamations yesterday adding public lands to the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument near Los Angeles and Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument in Northern California. This action will help the State of California and the Biden administration meet their shared goals of protecting 30% of lands and coastal waters by 2030, protect sacred Tribal lands, and safeguard biodiversity that is threatened by climate change.
“We are celebrating President Biden’s expansion of two California national monuments,” said Melanie Schlotterbeck, who leads Power In Nature’s Southland regional group. “Protecting these two landscapes is critical on our path to 30×30 and will safeguard important biodiversity and plant and wildlife habitat. For years, Tribal and Indigenous community leaders, and local residents have advocated for the protection of these places. President Biden heard their voices and delivered!”
The Power In Nature Coalition is also urging President Biden to build off of yesterday’s achievement and designate additional national monuments in California this year. Featured in the Los Angeles Times today in an editorial, these include the proposed Chuckwalla National Monument and Kw’tsán National Monument in the California Desert and the proposed Sáttítla Medicine Lake Highlands National Monument in far Northern California.
The editorial from the LA Times elaborates on the reason to protect these places, saying that the Biden administration “should build on these conservation efforts and extend monument status to three other ecologically rich California landscapes with deep significance to Indigenous tribes…Protecting those lands would put California closer to its goal of conserving at least 30% of land and coastal waters by 2030.”
30×30 is an initiative to protect both nature and human communities from the worst effects of climate change, with on-the-ground campaigns and conservation projects statewide to help reach this goal. This is part of a larger global movement to support nature-based solutions to help mitigate the climate and extinction crises.
“Scientists worldwide agree that in order to prevent the most severe impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss, we must protect at least 30% of the planet’s lands and coastal waters by 2030,” said Dr. Jun Bando, executive director of the California Native Plant Society. “In fact, this is seen as the bare minimum needed to avoid ecosystem collapse, safeguard biodiversity, and stabilize the planet’s climate. We can make significant progress towards this goal with the designation of new national monuments in California this year.”
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About the Power In Nature Coalition
Power In Nature is a statewide coalition of community groups, environmental and conservation organizations, land trusts, Indigenous organizations, and Tribal members dedicated to advancing California’s 30×30 commitment. The Power In Nature coalition has identified nearly 100 potential 30×30 projects across the state and works on a broad range of issues including biodiversity protection, climate resilience, equity, recreation, outdoor access, and social justice. For more information visit PowerInNature.org.
