President Joe Biden signs a proclamation to establish two new national monuments in California, in part to honor two tribes, a person familiar with the decision said Monday.
The proclamation will create Chuckwalla National Monument in Southern California, near Joshua Tree National Park, and Sattitla National Monument in Northern California, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss plans expected to be announced Tuesday in California.
The declaration prohibits drilling, mining and other development in an area of 600,000 acres (2,400 square kilometers) in Southern California and approximately 200,000 acres (800 square kilometers) in Northern California.
The creation of the new monuments was first reported in The Washington Post. Biden, who has two weeks left in office, is in New Orleans on Monday to meet with families of victims of the New Year’s Eve attack in the French Quarter and was headed to California later Monday.
This wave of activity is in line with the Democratic president’s “America the Beautiful” initiative launched in 2021, aimed at honoring tribal heritage, meeting federal goals of conserving 30% of public lands and waters by 2030 and to fight climate change.
The Pit River Tribe worked to have the federal government designate the Sattitla National Monument. A number of Native American tribes and environmental groups have begun pushing Biden to designate Chuckwalla National Monument, named for the large desert lizard, in early 2023.
The zone would protect public lands south of Joshua Tree National Park, extending across the Coachella Valley region west to near the Colorado River.
Advocates say the monument will protect a tribal cultural landscape, ensure access to nature for local residents and preserve sites of military history. The California Legislature passed a resolution in August 2024 to urge Biden to establish Chuckwalla National Monument and another national monument managed by the National Park Service, adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park, as well as Kw’tsan National Monument , which would border Mexico and Arizona. .
Tribal leaders also requested that the Chuckwalla monument honoring tribal sovereignty include local tribes as co-stewards, following in the footsteps of a recent wave of monuments such as the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, which is overseen in collaboration with five tribes. nations.
“Protecting Chuckwalla National Monument brings the Quechan people an immense sense of peace and joy,” the Quechan Tribe of Fort Yuma said in a statement. “Tribes coming together as stewards of this landscape are just the beginning of much-needed healing and healing.” restoration, and we look forward to fully rebuilding our relationship with this place.
In May, the Biden administration expanded two national monuments in California: the San Gabriel Mountains to the south and Berryessa Snow Mountain to the north. In October, Biden designated the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary along the central California coast, which will include input from local Chumash tribes on how the area is preserved.
Last year, the Yurok Tribe in Northern California also became the first indigenous people to receive tribal land from the National Park Service under a historic memorandum of understanding signed by the tribe, national parks and d Redwood State and the nonprofit Save the Redwoods League.