OAKLAND, Calif. – President Joe Biden on Tuesday designated two national monuments that will protect more than 800,000 acres of federal land in California, preserving habitats for threatened desert tortoises in the new Chuckwalla National Monument in the southern desert and bald eagles and northern spotted owls in the northern forest’s new Sáttítla National Monument. The new monuments’ boundaries protect lands that are culturally significant to tribes in both regions.
The Chuckwalla creates a continuous wildlife corridor stretching 624,000 acres from the Sonoran Desert in southern California to the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge in Arizona. The monument will protect critical desert areas where species can migrate, hunt and mate. The Sáttítla protects nearly 225,000 acres of forested land and an important source of clean water in northeastern California, near the Oregon border.
To make the designations, President Biden used the Antiquities Act of 1906, which gives a president the power to designate federal public lands, waters and cultural and historical sites as national monuments.
In response to the monument designations, Environment California State Director Laura Deehan released the following statement:
“These designations mean a brighter and safer future for California’s wildlife and public lands. Thanks to Tribal leaders, local coalitions and our state and Congressional champs, our state has made a huge stride today toward safeguarding more nature.
“The Chuckwalla and Sáttítla National Monuments are two of the most stunning and ecologically crucial regions in our state. The Chuckwalla National Monument is a perfect example of reconnecting nature. The region hosts one of the greatest densities of desert tortoises in the world and connecting their habitats will give these threatened tortoises better opportunities to survive and thrive.
“The forests and clear waters of the Sáttítla monument area will be a safe home for generations of bears, birds and fish; and the communities of northern California will have clean water for decades into the future.
“We are thrilled that President Biden, Secretary Deb Haaland, Secretary Tom Vilsack and other decision-makers recognized these stunning wildlife habitats and natural landscapes should be safeguarded.”
