Today, the Biden administration released its “America the Beautiful” report, focused on initiating locally-led plans for the conservation and restoration of lands and waters. Martin Hayden, Earthjustice’s Vice President of Policy & Legislation, released the following statement:

“This report is a critical first acknowledgment and outline for action to confront the biodiversity crisis. We are losing species and habitat at an unprecedented rate in our history, and this comes with a staggering cost. Rapid loss of biodiversity threatens every facet of our lives, from public health and food security, to storm protection and the fight against climate change. Today the Biden-Harris administration has laid out a plan to confront the biodiversity and climate crisis by drawing on our nation’s greatest strengths: rigorous science and the American people’s desire to protect our wildest places. We thank the administration for putting forward this report and committing to better management of our lands and waters in a way that prioritizes equitable participation, environmental justice, Tribal sovereignty, and local leadership at every step. Meaningful inclusion of Indigenous, tribal, environmental justice, and other resource users is essential to sustaining our environment and our nation’s future.”