Monday, April 1, 2013
Monday, March 25, 2013
It’s Official!
Today President Obama signed a proclamation designating approximately 970 acres of federally owned land as the San Juan Islands National Monument. These lands will be managed by the Bureau of Land Management for conservation and recreation purposes.
You may link to the full text of text of the San Juan Islands Proclamation signed into effect by President Obama.
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Friday, March 22, 2013
The White House announced last night that President Obama intends to create a new San Juan Islands National Monument on federal lands currently owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) throughout the San Juan Islands. This announcement will be made on Monday of next week.
We couldn’t be more pleased.
This designation comes in response to a community grassroots effort that began almost three years ago, and will apply to approximately 1,000 acres that are located throughout our archipelago. These lands, which include over 60 uninhabited islands, headlands and lighthouse properties, provide exceptional wildlife habitat and some of the most popular recreation destinations in the region. Cattle Point (San Juan Island), Iceberg Point and Watmough Bight (Lopez Island), Turn Point (Stuart Island), Carter Point (the southern tip of Lummi Island) and Patos Island are just a few of many natural treasures that would be permanently protected by this presidential proclamation.
The Preservation Trust’s goal was to ensure the highest level of protection for these important federal properties while providing a strong local voice in their management. This proclamation will fully satisfy our objectives, and we are pleased to announce our enthusiastic support for this outcome. The San Juan Islands National Monument will only includes land that is already under federal ownership – it will not apply to any private land in the islands, nor does it authorize any additional land acquisitions. The BLM will continue to manage these lands under their new National Monument status.
On behalf of these islands that we all love, THANK YOU to the many volunteers, organizations, local businesses and elected officials who demonstrated the power of community. It has been an honor for the San Juan Preservation Trust to play a part in this historic effort.
For more information about the pending San Juan Islands National Monument, visit www.SanJuanIslandsNM.org.