Avi Kwa Ame Becomes Nevada’s Newest National Monument

It is a time for celebrating our new national monuments. On March 21, 2023, President Biden held a Conservation in Action Summit in Washington D.C. At this Summit he proclaimed three new national monuments -- the Castner Range in El Paso, Texas, (6,672 acres); an area around the Pacific Remote Islands that covers 777,000 square miles and includes Hawaii, Guam and the other western islands, and Avi Kwa Ame (Spirit Mountain) a vast half million-acre area around Searchlight, Nevada (506,814 acres). I was very honored to be invited by the White House to attend the Summit.

I grew up in a family that lived in a city, and we didn’t spend much time outdoors. In fourth grade, I joined a scout troop to go camping and fell in love with the outdoors. I moved to the Spring Mountains to spend as much time as possible in nature. I joined Sierra Club and became a leader. I helped my Chapter and Group by tabling, getting petitions signed, writing letters to the editor, and whatever was needed.

The D.C. Summit gathering was an exciting day. The speakers included Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Department of the Interior, Fort Mojave Tribal Council Chairman Tim Williams, and President Biden. Seven other top government officials spoke as well. Every speaker emphasized something different, and there was a lot of information to absorb. Next, we had a break, and I got to meet Tracy Stone-Manning, Bureau of Land Management Director. I asked her about the final version of the Avi Kwa Ame map since there had been several versions. She told me that there were no cut-outs for industry or development — that the original map did not have Spirit Mountain in it, and that more land was now included than was requested. That was good news to hear.

Avi Kwa Ame is the largest land national monument President Biden has dedicated, and it protects just over half a million acres. This new Monument is a victory in many ways. It took years to build the coalition that included local citizens, Tribes, federal agencies, conservation groups, and more. This effort to protect Avi Kwa Ame is the best led and quickest campaign to get monument dedication in U.S. history. (See WOW, April, Aug, Dec 2022; Aug 2021; Dec 2020.) Avi Kwa Ame is the source of life, home and is most sacred to the Mojave, Chemehuevi, and some Southern Paiute tribes and is important to other Tribal Nations including the Cocopah, Halchidhoma, Havasupai, Hopi, Hualapai, Kumeyaay, Maricopa, Pai Pai, Quechan, Yavapai and Zuni. The scenic peaks are designated as a Traditional Cultural Property on the National Register of Historic Places. The Gila monster, bighorn sheep, Arizona toad, desert tortoise -- a threatened species, and the Joshua tree all are native to Avi Kwa Ame.

For the Tribes, it means that their spiritual land is preserved for future generations. It also shows that they are being heard and that they have a broad range of support. This support goes from the local level to Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Interior, to President Biden and beyond. Avi Kwa Ame will be under co-stewardship: Tribes with the Department of Interior and local communities will work together to locate and develop a visitor’s center and other visitor facilities. Avi Kwa Ame has ties to Hollywood. Areas to visit and hike include the Walking Box Ranch. Rex Bell and Clara Bow, husband and wife actors in the 1920s, owned a large ranch here (400,000 acres). 

Another nearby hiking area is Wee Thump Joshua Tree — one of the 14 new wilderness areas in Clark County established in 2002 and a special favorite of former Nevada Senator Harry Reid, a Searchlight resident. Wee Thump is the Paiute name for “Ancient Ones.” And there is Christmas Tree Pass. Trees in this area become decorated each December, but the plastic and metallic decorations are harmful to wildlife. When you go there (especially in months other than December) please help carefully remove tinsel, ornaments and other extraneous items. Because so many important and threatened desert wildlife species make their home in Avi Kwa Ame, a big focus on wildlife preservation is inevitable. An important aspect of this new designation is that it completes a wildlife corridor from California through Nevada to Arizona. This protected land corridor far exceeds anything that has been done before in allowing wildlife to move in a way that is natural for them as opposed to a man-made fence, bridge, or other built structure that facilitates wildlife movement.

Setting aside 30 percent of our nation’s land and waters by 2030 (30 x 30) is a big goal. With the addition of these new national monuments President Biden has now moved us  closer to this ambitious goad as he has helped to conserve 567,290 land acres
plus 777,000 square miles (equivalent to 497,280,000 acres of land) of the Pacific Ocean. This is truly a time for celebration.