What is Wild and Scenic?
(Make sure you scroll down to the "What Wild & Scenic Work is Happening?" section below to find out what is happening now.)
Simply put, wild and scenic refers to laws and systems created by such laws designed to protect rivers and ensure their free flowing state. Rivers protected by such laws are often described as wild & scenic.
Just as there are national parks and state parks to protect land or areas of importance, there are systems called wild and scenic to protect and preserve rivers. Friends of the River has been a part of every wild and scenic river campaign in California since our founding in 1973! We look forward to protecting more rivers through both the state and national wild and scenic river systems!
Wild and scenic can be broken up into two distinct but similar systems.
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- The national wild and scenic river system
- The state wild and scenic river system.
Both systems are used in the state of California and offer varying levels of protection and management. We've got a handy memo on rivers protected by California's Wild & Scenic River Act, the history of the statute, and how the Act works. We also compare it to the National Wild & Scenic Rivers Act and provide some brief origin stories of the national wild & scenic rivers in California. Not a bad reference and one that is updated frequently. Check it out the latest below:
FOR CAWSRs memo (December 5 2023) pdf
FOR CAWSRs memo (December 5 2023) docs
Why Does Wild and Scenic Matter?
Wild and Scenic designation for a river is one way that we can help preserve the river system's health.
Preservation is done through different methods, and it depends on which system the river is designated under or the provisions of the Act that protects the river. Both statutes prohibit dams, diversions, or other impoundments. Wild and Scenic also serves to protect the water quality and river ecosystem from pollutants and other threats.
California has 189,454 miles of river. Of that, only 2,076 miles are protected in the national wild and scenic system. The state system protects 1,485 miles. Together only 1% of our state’s rivers are protected.
What Wild and Scenic Work is Happening?
On October 26, the U.S. House of Representative passed H.R. 4394, the “Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2024,” which, among other ill-advised measures, includes H.R. 215, a bill that attempts to federally preempt measures to protect the McCloud River in the California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. U.S. Senators and the Administration should know about this. An important Administration contact is
Shalanda Young, Director,
Office of Management and Budget
Executive Office of the President
The White House
725 – 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20503
Turning to the better angels of the public, Friends of the River wants you to know about some wild & scenic river designation coalition efforts in California. Some coalition members have been working for many years on specific region-based bills while others are working on the entire package. Together these three bills that failed in the previous three Congresses had the potential to help protect over 650 miles of rivers and creeks! For some background and updates, keep reading.
118th Congress (2023-2024)
California national wild & scenic rivers bills introduced once again: On April 10, 2023, Rep. Carbajol (D Santa Barbara) reintroduced his Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, H.R. 2545. On May 10, Rep. Judy Chu (D Monterey Park) reintroduced her now renamed once again San Gabriel Mountains Protection Act, H.R. 3681. On May 24, Rep. Jared Huffman (D San Rafael) reintroduced the Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act, H.R. 3700. On May 31, Senator Alex Padilla (D CA) reintroduced his now renamed Public Lands Act, S. 1776, including the provisions of the three House bills.
Padilla Introduces Bill to Protect 1 Million Acres of California Public Lands
https://carbajal.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1413
These House lands and national wild & scenic river bills failed to achieve passage the previous three Congresses. Senator Padilla’s bill failed to pass the U.S. Senate in the previous Congress, as had Kamala Harris’s bills in the previous two Congresses. For some more details about the bills see the descriptions of the previous Congresses.
Attack on the California Wild & Scenic Rivers Act: On January 9, 2023, in the opening days of the 118th Congress, Representative David Valadao (R Hanford) introduced H.R. 215, the Working to Advance Tangible and Effective Reforms (WATER) for California Act (the WATER for California Act). The measure was co-sponsored by Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R Bakersfield) along with the members of the California Republican delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives.
H.R. 215 §305(a) would, apparently without the previous restrictions, make available unspent WIIN Act appropriations from 2017–2021 to Reclamation’s Water and Related Resources Account. These appropriations bills prohibited construction funding for Reclamation’s Shasta Dam raise. In addition, H.R. 215 §301 amends the IIJA (the bipartisan infrastructure bill) to allow for Congressional appropriations for the construction of the Shasta Dam raise under the IIJA, which had prohibited construction funding for the Shasta Dam raise.
Also, H.R. 215 §305(b) purports (for CVP contractors) to override the California Wild & Scenic Rivers Act provisions (CA PRC §5093.542(c)) that prevent public agencies of the state of California (agencies of the state and many political subdivisions of the state) from assisting Reclamation in the planning and construction of the Shasta Dam raise.
The bill was passed out of (marked up by) the House Natural Resources Committee on March 28, 2023. In June, 2023, the House Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee added the text of H.R. 215 to its markup of the Energy and Water Appropriations bill (see page 64, Title V “Water for California” Sec. 501). On October 26, the U.S. House of Representative passed H.R. 4394, the “Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2024.” H.R. 4394 included H.R. 215.
The Smith River NRA bill introduced once again: On January 31, Oregon U.S. Senator Merkley, with Oregon U.S. Senator Wyden and California U.S. Senators Feinstein, and Padilla as co-sponsors, reintroduce the Smith River National Recreation Area Expansion Act, S. 162, a measure to expand national wild & scenic river and NRA coverage of the Smith River into the state of Oregon. Most of the Smith River watershed is in California and protected by wild & scenic river designation and an NRA. This measure would provide for similar protections within the state of Oregon (adjacent to California). The bill was reported out of Committee (marked up) on May 17.
The bill has failed in the two previous Congresses, but there is always hope.
Here's some more information about the bill:
2023-1-30 News Release Smith River NRA expansion introduction
smith_river_nra_2023_proposed_map
smith_river_nra_2023_bill_text
117th Congress (the previous Congress)
In California: On Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a package of bills called The Protecting America's Wilderness and Public Lands Act. Four of the bills would protect public lands in California, including the lands and rivers from these bills that failed final passage in the two previous Congress:
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- San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act
- Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act
- Central Coast Heritage Protection Act, Rep. Salud Carbajal
- Rim of the Valley Corridor Preservation Act, Rep. Adam Schiff (no wild & scenic rivers)
On May 3, 2021, U.S. Senator Padilla introduced the “Protecting Unique and Beautiful Landscapes by Investing in California (PUBLIC) Lands Act” (S. 1459) as a U.S. Senate complement to the House bill (view details and maps here), For folks outside of California, you can help by reaching out to your Senators and let them know you want to see this bill passed in this Congress! You can find out who your senator is here. Keep an eye out for action alerts as this bill progresses.
On July 14, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives also voted to add the House-passed package to the National Defense Authorization Act, as they had done in the previous Congress. The California wild and scenic river provisions are in the text here. In the previous (116th) Congress, this amendment was eventually stripped out as non-germane.
These bills also failed in the 117th Congress.
On August 16, 2022, Rep. McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) and the California Republican Congressional delegation sent a letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom asking him to do the following: (1) reconsider its opposition to the Shasta Dam enlargement project, (2) allow local water districts to partner with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to advance the project, and (3) work with the Legislature to amend state law if necessary to make sure the project can be advanced as quickly as possible. The California Wild & Scenic Rivers Act prohibits state and local water district involvement in the planning and construction of the expansion of the Shasta Reservoir.
In Oregon : On May 4, 2021, just over the California border, Oregon U.S. Senators Merkley and Wyden introduced S. 1538, a bill to add 58,000 acres in the North Fork Smith River watershed in Oregon to the Smith River National Recreation Area already existing in California. Together they encompasses much of the Smith River watershed. The bill also adds 74 miles of river to the national wild & scenic river system along with a mining withdrawal. California's U.S. Senators are cosponsoring the bill. On July 21, 2022, S. 1538 cleared the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee with bipartisan support. For some more information about the legislation, you can check it out here: One Pager_10oct19
This bill also failed to achieve passage in the 117th Congress, similar to its fate in the 116th Congress.
Below Is A Summary Of Events That Took Place In 2020
These events took place in the 116th Congress (the penultimate Congress)
February 2020: All three bills passed through the House of Representatives and were introduced to the Senate as one bill. This bill (S.3288 PUBLIC Lands Act), which had died in the previous Congress, was introduced by then Senator Harris and combined all three House bills into a single senate package.
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- Central Coast Heritage Protection Act was the product of years of hard work and local collaboration. This house bill was re-introduced by Representative Salud Carbajal and reintroduced in the 117th Congress on February 11, 2021. This bill would seek the protection of 200,000 acres of wilderness and designate 159 miles of river to the National Wild and Scenic System. These protections would help ensure that residents of the central coast of California would have access to wilderness, clean water running through their streams and rivers, and help boost the local economy.
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- Northwest California Wilderness, Recreation, and Working Forests Act was introduced by Representative Huffman in the previous Congress and has been reintroduced in the 117th Congress as H.R. 878. With the northwest region of California boasting some of the most stunning river systems, forests, and coastline, it's no surprise this bill aimed to build on the robust wilderness and wild and scenic rivers protections. The addition of over 250,000 acres to wilderness areas and over 450 miles to the National Wild and Scenic System would help preserve the crucial salmon and steelhead fisheries in the region
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- San Gabriel Mountains Foothills and Rivers Protection Act was introduced by Representative Chu of California's 32nd Congressional district in the 116th Congress and has been reintroduced in this (the 117th) Congress as H.R. 693. This bill would help ensure the future of the San Gabriel National Monument, which was established by the Obama administration. The Trump administration put the monument under review. If this bill would become law it will designate 45 miles of river under the National Wild and Scenic System and add over 100,000 acres to the monument. With such close proximity to the largest population center of the west coast, it is important that we not only protect and preserve these spaces but also aim to create an opportunity for their enjoyment.
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July 2020: Protecting America's Wilderness Act (PAWA) was included in the House version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passed on 7/22/20. However, the Senate version of the NDAA did not include it.
Learn more: Protecting America's Wilderness Act Summary
December 2020: The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) eventually passed the Congress (over President Trump's veto). However, in spite of valiant efforts, the NDAA at final passage did not contain any public lands or wild & scenic river elements. Unfortunately, these bills did not pass the Congress.