National Conservation Area is a designation for certain protected areas in the United States. They are nature conservation areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) under the National Landscape Conservation System.
Restrictions vary between these conservation areas, but generally they are not leased or sold under mining laws and motorized vehicle use is restricted, unlike many other BLM areas.
There are seventeen National Conservation Areas within the National Landscape Conservation System, they are:
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Grand Junction, Colorado and with oversight over 247.3 million acres (1,001,000 km2), it governs one eighth of the country's landmass.
The Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument (GSENM) is a United States national monument originally designated in 1996 as 1,880,461 acres (7,610 km2) of protected land in southern Utah. In 2017, the monument's size was reduced by half in a succeeding presidential proclamation. The land is among the most remote in the country; it was the last to be mapped in the contiguous United States.
Yaquina Head is a headland extending into the Pacific Ocean north of Newport, in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is the site of the Yaquina Head Light, and is managed as Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area by the Bureau of Land Management. It is part of the National Landscape Conservation System, commonly known as the National Conservation Lands.
The Headwaters Forest Reserve is a group of old growth coast redwood groves, comprising about 7,472 acres (30.24 km2), managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) as part of the National Landscape Conservation System. Located in the Northern California coastal forests ecoregion near Humboldt Bay of the U.S. state of California.
The King Range is a mountain range of the Outer Northern California Coast Ranges System, located entirely within Humboldt County on the North Coast of California.
The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) of the United States protects federally managed wilderness areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. Activity on formally designated wilderness areas is coordinated by the National Wilderness Preservation System. Wilderness areas are managed by four federal land management agencies: the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. The term "wilderness" is defined as "an area where the earth and community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain" and "an area of undeveloped Federal land retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human habitation, which is protected and managed so as to preserve its natural conditions." As of 2021, there are 803 designated wilderness areas, totaling 111,368,221 acres (45,069,120 ha), or about 4.5% of the area of the United States.
The Fish Slough Area of Critical Environmental Concern is a protected slough in Inyo County, eastern California. It is located on the western side of the Chalfant Valley, 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Bishop in the northern Owens Valley area.
National Conservation Lands, formally known as the National Landscape Conservation System, is a 35-million-acre (140,000 km2) collection of lands in 873 federally recognized areas considered to be the crown jewels of the American West. These lands represent 10% of the 258 million acres (1,040,000 km2) managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The BLM is the largest federal public land manager and is responsible for over 40% of all the federal public land in the nation. The other major federal public land managers include the US Forest Service (USFS), National Park Service (NPS), and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
A wilderness study area (WSA) contains undeveloped United States federal land retaining its primeval character and influence, without permanent improvements or human habitation, and managed to preserve its natural conditions. WSAs are not included in the National Wilderness Preservation System until the United States Congress passes wilderness legislation.
Agua Fria National Monument is in the U.S. state of Arizona, approximately 40 miles (64 km) north of downtown Phoenix, Arizona. Created by Presidential proclamation on January 11, 2000, the 72,344-acre monument is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, an agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior. The Bureau of Land Management already managed the lands; however, under monument status the level of protection and preservation of resources within the new monument have been enhanced.
Mark Eugene Amodei is an American lawyer and Republican politician serving as the U.S. Representative for Nevada's 2nd congressional district since 2011. The only Republican in Nevada's congressional delegation, he served in the Nevada Assembly from 1997 to 1999 and in the Nevada Senate, representing the Capital District, from 1999 to 2011. Amodei chaired the Nevada Republican Party from 2010 until 2011, when he stepped down in order to pursue the nomination for a special election for Congress; he was the Republican nominee in the election held on September 13, 2011, to replace Dean Heller, who had been appointed to the United States Senate. He became the dean of Nevada's congressional delegation once Heller lost his election for a second full term in 2019, although Dina Titus served one term in the House before he was first elected.
According to the California Protected Areas Database (CPAD), in the state of California, United States, there are over 14,000 inventoried protected areas administered by public agencies and non-profits. In addition, there are private conservation areas and other easements. They include almost one-third of California's scenic coastline, including coastal wetlands, estuaries, beaches, and dune systems. The California State Parks system alone has 270 units and covers 1.3 million acres (5,300 km2), with over 280 miles (450 km) of coastline, 625 miles (1,006 km) of lake and river frontage, nearly 18,000 campsites, and 3,000 miles (5,000 km) of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails.
An Outstanding Natural Area is a protected area designation in the United States. The designations are managed by the Bureau of Land Management within the National Landscape Conservation System. Three ONAs have been designated by Congress, Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse, Piedras Blancas Historic Light Station, and Yaquina Head, all of which protect lighthouses and the adjacent land.. The others were named by the BLM and have a variety of resources.
The Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area is a 62,844-acre (254.32 km2) National Conservation Area located in west-central Colorado near Montrose. It is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) as part of the National Landscape Conservation System. 57,725 acres (233.60 km2) were designated in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area Act of 1999. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison Boundary Revision Act of 2003 expanded the NCA to its current size.
Sleeping Giant Wilderness Study Area is a non-motorized recreation area located on the west side of the Missouri River and Holter Lake located about 30 miles (48 km) north of Helena, Montana. Designated as a wilderness study area in 1981, the Sleeping Giant Wilderness Study Area contains approximately 6,666 acres (2,698 ha) of nearly roadless land, about half of which is forested. A portion of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail is contained inside the study area.
The Red Cliffs National Conservation Area is a 44,724-acre (180.99 km2) National Conservation Area located in southwest Utah, north of St. George at the northeasternmost edge of the Mojave Desert. It is managed by the Bureau of Land Management as part of the National Landscape Conservation System, and was created as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009.
The Beaver Dam Wash National Conservation Area is a 63,500-acre (257 km2) United States National Conservation Area located in southwest Utah west of St. George along the borders with Arizona and Nevada. It is managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management as part of the National Landscape Conservation System, and was authorized in the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009.
The Rio Grande del Norte National Monument is an approximately 242,555-acre (98,159 ha) area of public lands in Taos County, New Mexico, proclaimed as a national monument on March 25, 2013 by President Barack Obama under the provisions of the Antiquities Act. It consists of the Rio Grande Gorge and surrounding lands, managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
San Juan Islands National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the Salish Sea in the state of Washington. The monument protects archaeological sites of the Coast Salish peoples, lighthouses and relics of early European American settlers in the Pacific Northwest, and biodiversity of the island life in the region. The monument was created from existing federal land by President Barack Obama on March 25, 2013 under the Antiquities Act.
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