Courtney Bourgoin, courtney.bourgoin@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC-- Today, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the Protecting America’s Wilderness Act (PAW)-- a bill to protect more than 1.4 million acres of wilderness, conserve critical habitat, and safeguard thousands of miles of rivers across the United States. The package includes designations for new Wilderness areas, Wild and Scenic rivers, forests and other protections across California, Colorado and Washington. Watch a livestream of the vote, and read the full legislation here.
Ahead of the vote, Athan Manuel, Director of Land Policy at the Sierra Club, released the following statement:
“This legislation is a monumental move to protect our environment and fight the climate crisis. Preserving our public lands and waters-- keeping fossil fuels in the ground and permanently protecting these places-- will help halt and reverse climate pollution.
The Protecting America’s Wilderness Act represents real action, and we applaud Congressional leadership for their work on these common-sense safeguards. These protections will provide immeasurable benefits to our communities, climate stability and for generations to come.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.