Public Lands

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly in support of a bipartisan public lands bill that safeguards more than 2 million federal acres and permanently reauthorizes the popular Land and Water Conservation Fund, established in 1964 to protect natural areas and water resources.

The measure, which includes more than 100 individual pieces of legislation, is said to be the largest public lands package in a decade. It establishes more than 1.3 million acres of new wilderness, protects hundreds of miles of rivers and trails, and creates four new national monuments.

“This is not only lands. This is water, this is sportsmen, this is conservation. This is about developing local economies,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who co-introduced the bill with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), said during a press conference following the vote. “This is about who we […]

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