According to a statement from House Natural Resources Chairman Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Arizona), the House of Representatives is expected to vote next week on a Western public lands package that would provide new protections for nearly 1.5 million acres of public lands and withdraw land from consideration for oil, gas, and mining leasing. The bill, the Protecting America’s Wilderness and Public Lands Act, includes eight previously individual measures that address key public lands and waters in Arizona, Colorado, California, and Washington. For California, a measure from Representative Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) — H.R. 973 — would protect areas in the Los Padres National Forest and Carrizo Plain National Monument from mineral extraction and new road construction as well as designate two new scenic areas. Additionally, a measure from Representative Jared Huffman (D-Marin) — H.R. 878 — would establish wilderness and recreation areas in Northern California.
