Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** The opportunity for President Biden to protect a thriving ocean ecosystem
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Tuesday, July 25, 2023
The Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. Photo by Kydd Pollock, used by permission.

In the Pacific Ocean, about 1,200 miles east of the Marianas, 900 miles southwest of the Hawaiian islands, and 1,000 miles north of Samoa, sits a collection of seven islands and atolls ([link removed]) known as Pacific Remote Islands ([link removed]) (PRI) Marine National Monument.

In a new post ([link removed]) as part of the Center for Western Priorities' Road to 30 Postcards ([link removed]) campaign, Policy and Design Associate Lilly Bock-Brownstein explains the historic and cultural significance of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument—one of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems in the world—and the opportunity for President Joe Biden to permanently protect the seascape.

Not only would the proposed PRI National Marine Sanctuary ensure permanent protections for a critical ocean enclave while honoring cultural traditions and history, it would fulfill the Biden administration’s promise to protect 30 percent of U.S. waters by 2030 ([link removed]) .

"In a world of climate change where we know things are being pushed away from the Western Pacific, this is the perfect place to set up what I call kind of a bank account,"
said Robert Richmond, research professor and Director of the Kewala Marine Laboratory at University of Hawaii Manoa, in a conversation ([link removed]) with the Center for Western Priorities. "The living resources are your principal and their reproductive output is the interest."
Quick hits


** Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Sanctuary provides opportunity to protect a thriving ocean ecosystem
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Westwise ([link removed])


** Report: Record heat across U.S. 'virtually impossible' without climate change
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CNN ([link removed]) | Axios ([link removed]) | NBC News ([link removed]) | CNBC ([link removed])


** Opinion: Proposed Public Lands Rule would bring balance to public lands in Idaho and around the West
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Idaho Statesman ([link removed])


** 3 things to know about Biden’s proposed oil regulations
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E&E News ([link removed])


** How AI could help detect wildfires earlier
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Axios ([link removed])


** The tiny lizard at the center of a big Endangered Species Act fight
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Washington Post ([link removed])


** Opinion: Overshadowed by Colorado's 14ers, New Mexico's mountains have their own allure
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Santa Fe New Mexican ([link removed])


** The race to save baby birds in Phoenix’s record heat
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Washington Post ([link removed])
Quote of the day
”

The Pacific Remote Islands hold precious connections to our past and promise for our future as Pacific peoples. In the same way these waters are at the nexus of cross-cultural voyaging pathways across Polynesia, they likewise are an intersection of climate change mitigation, cultural practice and scientific discovery. We must protect these waters.”
—Sol Kahoʻohalahala, Native Hawaiian Elder, Kupa ʻĀina ʻo Lānaʻi and member of the PRI Coalition, Westwise ([link removed])
Picture this


** @Interior ([link removed])
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Two juvenile mountain bluebirds are enjoying a sunny afternoon at
@RockyNPS ([link removed]) in Colorado.

These powder-blue birds add delightful songs and exquisite beauty to the landscapes of the western half of the continent, including the Rocky Mountains.

Photo by A. Schonlau / NPS

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