EBS STAFF
On Feb. 26, the U.S. House passed the Natural Resources
Management Act in a 363-52 vote. The bill is a public lands package that
includes the Land and Water Conservation Fund and previously passed the Senate
on Feb. 13. The bill will now sit on President Trump’s desk and he is expected
to sign it.
The Yellowstone Gateway Protection Act falls under the NRMA.
If signed by Trump, the act would permanently ban mining on 30,000 acres of
public land just outside Yellowstone National Park.
“As we celebrate this important milestone, we celebrate the
program’s original intent,” said Jonathan Asher, Government Relations Manager
at The Wilderness Society and a spokesman for the LWCF Coalition, “…that
proceeds from public resource extraction will be dedicated to the protection of
our greatest natural parks and outdoor places.”