For Immediate Release
May 2, 2024
Contact: Thomas Plank, 303-720-0111 [email protected]
Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Expanded Via Antiquities Act
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the voice for our wild public lands, waters, and wildlife, today Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) applauded the Biden administration for its use of the Antiquities Act to expand the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
Approximately 13,696 acres encompassing Molok Luyuk (Condor Ridge) will be permanently conserved in California’s Lake and Colusa counties. The monument's expansion will safeguard vital habitat and public access which includes the Cache Creek and Bear Valley tule elk hunt zones. These lands also hold spiritual and cultural significance to the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation, and the Cachil Dehe Band of Wintun Indians. The Bureau of Land Management will continue to steward these public lands under their multiple-use mandate and the state of California will retain wildlife management authority ensuring hunting access will be maintained.
“Today we thank President Biden for answering the call of hunters, anglers, and public land owners across California by taking action to expand the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument through his authority under the Antiquities Act,” said Eric Hanson, chair of the California chapter of BHA. “We also commend the leadership of Sens. Padilla, as well as Reps. Garamendi and Thompson for their longtime support for the conservation of these public lands and waters that provide opportunities for sportsmen and women in a state that is rapidly developing.”
As recently as 2022 applications have been submitted for industrial scale wind energy development on Condor Ridge. The expansion of the national monument will ensure this iconic landscape and the wildlife that thrive on it remain intact. BHA has advocated for the conservation of this important region for over a decade and supported the designation of Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument by President Obama in 2015. Legislation supported by BHA to expand the national monument has been led by Reps. John Garamendi (D-CA) and Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA).
BHA has consistently advocated for America’s national monuments system and the targeted use of federal conservation tools such as the Antiquities Act to permanently conserve the natural heritage and distinctive values of places like Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument and the Molok Luyuk expansion.
Key to achieving this outcome is a process that is locally driven, transparent, incorporates the science-based management of habitat, and upholds existing hunting and fishing opportunities. Additional information can be found in our report National Monuments: A Hunting and Fishing Perspective.
Backcountry Hunters & Anglers seeks to ensure North America's outdoor heritage of hunting and fishing in a natural setting, through education and work on behalf of wild public lands, waters, and wildlife.