Over 2 million acres are now protected thanks to Congress

Thanks to a new bill passed by Congress, 1 million acres of land will be set aside for conservation. This is the largest public land bill approved by Congress in a decade! So what does it entail?

1.3 million acres will be protected as wilderness, which is the highest level of protection that can be given. Another million will be protected in the form of national monuments, protected wild and scenic rivers, as well as other designations. 375,000 of the acres are in Southern California while half a million will be added in Utah. 30,000 acres in Montana will be protected from mining and 100,000 acres of the Umpqua watershed in Oregon will be conserved. The bill also renews the land and water conservation fund, which means any income generated from offshore oil and gas lease saying will go towards protecting natural areas. 

Sources:

National Geographic