Colorado Wilderness Act of 2019

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding, and I also thank her for her leadership not just on her own bill, but for leading the charge on a package of bills that includes my Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act as Title II.

The lands in my district that are included in this legislation represent some of the most biodiverse ecosystems and exciting outdoor opportunities in California. It ranges from old growth trees that are so critical for carbon sequestration to rivers that provide habitat and unparalleled fishing and boating to mountain trails that offer hiking, biking, and other unique backcountry experiences.

Being active in the outdoors, experiencing these wild places, and connecting to a healthy environment is a way of life in the Second District of California. My constituents and visitors from around the State and around the country take pride in these public lands, and we all depend on the ecological resources and economic benefits that they provide. That is why my legislation takes a multifaceted approach.

First, it includes an ambitious restoration plan to improve forest health, promote fire resilience, and protect communities while restoring diverse ecosystems that are naturally adapted to fire and that provide fish habitat. It would also establish a partnership to restore public lands and waters that have been damaged by illegal marijuana growth sites, which pose significant threats to public health and safety, law enforcement, wildlife, and water quality.

Second, it recognizes the importance of the outdoor recreation economy. In my district, residents spend almost $2 billion in outdoor recreation each year. This legislation would increase recreational opportunities and spur tourism by proposing new visitor centers, overnight lodging, and a significant expansion of trails for multiple uses, including hiking, biking, horseback riding, and off-highway vehicle use.

Expanding these recreational opportunities benefits outdoor enthusiasts and the local businesses that are an integral part of the recreation economy. Investing in our public lands means that we are also investing in communities near our public lands.

As Kent Collard of the Bar 717 Ranch in Trinity County told the Natural Resources Committee last year, ``The best thing we can do for these lands, for businesses like mine that depend on untrammeled tracts of wilderness, is to protect them. Like many other businesses in this area, ours is fueled by people seeking to experience the wild beauty of Trinity County. The Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act recognizes and promotes economic opportunities that recreation presents to our rural communities.'' Economic opportunities.

Third, this legislation would protect important wild places on public lands in my district. It designates roughly 262,000 acres of wilderness, 51,000 acres of potential wilderness, and 480 miles of wild and scenic rivers.

These areas include critical habitat for endangered salmon and steelhead, rare native plant ecosystems, and some of the largest intact old-growth forests in California. These areas also include some of the best fishing, hiking, and white-water runs in the State.

Like other pieces of legislation in the package we are considering today, this takes conservation seriously because it is urgently needed for the future of our planet.

Lastly, I would like to explain how this bill was developed. Over more than 3 years, in fact, not long after I came to Congress in 2013, I started asking stakeholders what policy issues should be addressed in public lands legislation in my district. I have repeatedly sat down with constituents, presented these proposals at public meetings, and discussed concerns with county supervisors. I have moved boundaries and removed wilderness proposals because of concerns from landowners, the timber industry, and Tribes. This level of stakeholder participation means that I have focused on what people in northwest California want to see with their public lands. I think this comprehensive, carefully crafted legislation has broad support.

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Mr. HUFFMAN. Madam Chair, I want to point out this bill has support from conservation organizations, outdoor recreation groups, dozens of businesses, community leaders, adjacent landowners. It is a long and broad list of support.

Madam Chair, I request a favorable vote for this legislation.

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