After multiple efforts in Congress–Republican and Democrat–to protect the San Gabriel Mountains near Los Angeles have been stymied by a few public land opponents in the House Natural Resources Committee, the President used his authority under the Antiquities Act last month to grant the area extra protection as a national monument.
It was the right move. The San Gabriel Mountains are an essential asset, providing LA County with most of its remaining open space for recreation and supplying a third of its drinking water. Still, there are those who–looking through partisan shaded lenses–were quick to criticize the designation.
In an op-ed appearing in the Riverside/San Bernardino Press Enterprise, Bridgett Luther reminds everyone that protecting the San Gabriels has always been a bi-partisan endeavor and that Antiquities Act authority is a Republican tool. Luther served as Director of the California Department of Conservation in the Schwarzenegger Administration, is president of Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, and a former staff member of Conservatives for Responsible Stewardship.
Click the link below to check it out:
BRIDGETT LUTHER: Protecting San Gabriel Mountains is a bipartisan cause