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Protecting America’s natural wonders Here’s a look at some of the scenic areas that either are protected by the federal government or may be protected in the future, pending congressional legislation.
The Beauty Mountain and Agua Tibia Act, introduced by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), would protect more than 21,000 acres of deep canyons and fascinating rock formations in northern San Diego County. The proposed wilderness would expand the Beauty Mountain and Agua Tibia wilderness areas in Riverside County that were protected under omnibus legislation signed into law in 2009.
Douglas Steakley
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Bald River Waterfall in the Cherokee National Forest is part of the Tennessee Wilderness Act. Introduced by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), the bill would protect nearly 20,000 acres of wilderness in the Cherokee.
Bill and Laura Hodge
Cathedral Rock, located in central Oregon. The Cathedral Rock and Horse Heaven Wilderness Act, introduced by Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), would protect more than 16,000 acres of wilderness near the Lower John Day River.
Greg Burke
Pratt Valley is included in a bill sponsored by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Rep. David Reichert (R-Wash.) to expand the existing Alpine Lakes Wilderness by 22,100 acres and designate parts of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie and Pratt Rivers as wild and scenic.
Harry Romberg
Castle Peak in the Boulder-White Clouds Mountains is among the more than 330,000 acres that would be safeguarded as wilderness by the Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act, sponsored by Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho).
Brad Smith
Cross Island is one of 13 islands of the Maine Coastal Islands National Wildlife Refuge that would be protected as wilderness under the Maine Coastal Islands Wilderness Act, sponsored by Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine).
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The Angeles and San Bernardino National Forests Protection Act includes an additional 12,000 acres for the Sheep Mountain Wilderness northeast of Los Angeles. The bill, sponsored by Rep. David Dreier (R-Calif.), would improve protection of these national forests — two of the most widely visited in the nation — so they will continue to be available for hiking, camping, horseback riding and other outdoor activities.
Michael E. Gordon
The North Fork Blackfoot-Monture Creek Wilderness would be expanded under the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act, sponsored by Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.). The legislation would protect nearly 700,000 acres of wilderness across the Beaverhead-Deerlodge, Lolo and Kootenai National Forests.
Mark Good
The Potrillos Mountains near Las Cruces, N.M., would be protected as part of the Organ Mountains-Dona Ana County Conservation and Protection Act introduced by Sens. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) and Tom Udall (D-N.M.). The measure would designate 241,000 acres of wilderness and create a 100,000-acre National Conservation Area around the Organ and Robledo Mountains and parts of Broad Canyon.
Stephen Capra
The San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act would add protection for one of the most geologically diverse mountain ranges in the world. Legislation sponsored by Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.) would designate 33,000 acres of wilderness in southwest Colorado, including additions to the Lizard Head Wilderness.
John Richter Photography
Mineral King Valley, in Sequoia National Park in California, was designated as wilderness as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act. This bill protected 85,000 acres of wilderness in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.
Joe Fontaine
Docs Pass, located in Washington County, Utah, was included in the Washington County Growth and Conservation Act, which protected nearly 256,000 acres of wilderness in the county. The act also established the Red Cliffs and Beaver Dam Wash National Conservation Areas and safeguarded more than 160 miles of the Virgin River in and around Zion National Park. This act passed as a part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
Ray Bloxham
Dominguez Canyon Wilderness, just south of Grand Junction, Colo., was designated wilderness as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act. The 66,000-acre wilderness lies within the nearly 200,000-acre Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area, which was also created by this act.
Leeann Hill
Dolly Sods, in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia, was part of 37,000 acres of wilderness in the forest that was designated by the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
Jeremy Tooley
Owyhee-Bruneau Canyonlands in southwestern Idaho. This 517,000-acre wilderness was designated as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
John McCarthy
Badlands Wilderness is nearly 31,000 acres just east of Bend, Ore., that was designated as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
Greg Burke
Siskiyou National Forest in southern Oregon. A total of 13,700 acres of pristine old-growth forest surrounding the headwaters of the Elk River was protected as the Copper Salmon Wilderness in the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
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Mount Hood, southeast of Portland, Ore. More than 130,000 acres of wilderness in the Mount Hood National Forest and nearly 80 miles of rivers were protected by the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
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Sandy Lonsdale
Sabinoso Wilderness in San Miguel County, N.M. More than 15,000 acres of wilderness was protected when this area was included in the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.
Miranda Gray
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Section:/national/health-science
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