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The President: As some of you know, in my State
of the Union address I talked about taking any actions
that I could to ensure that this incredible gift
of American lands, the natural bounty that has
been passed on to us from previous generations,
is preserved for future generations.
And I pledged to act wherever I could to make
sure that our children, our grandchildren are
going to be able to look upon this land of ours
with the same wonder as we have.
Today, I'm taking the important step
by designating the Point Arena-Stornetta Public
Lands as a national monument.
I want to thank the lawmakers who supported
this proclamation, including Representatives
Jared Huffman and Mike Thompson, as well
as Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer.
And I also want to recognize Larry Stornetta,
who is here -- there is Larry right here -- whose
family helped care for this land and sold part of
the ranch so the public could access it.
We are talking about over 1,600 acres of incredible
coastline in California that reflects the
incredible diversity of flora and fauna.
It is a place where scientists do research;
where people who just want to experience the great
outdoors can take advantage of it.
It is a huge economic boost for the region.
California tourism obviously is important,
and the California coastline I think is as
big of an attraction as there is.
And so for us to make sure that this is going to be
properly preserved, that it is going to be
cherished, that the federal protections will
be available I think is going to make
all the difference.
And one of the great things about the way we've
done our national monument designations is that
we've made sure that all the stakeholders
are involved throughout this process.
We've talked to local communities.
We've talked to local business interests.
We've talked to Native American tribes.
We make sure that anybody who may have some impact,
their voice is heard.
And, unanimously, in this part of the country people
believe that this is the right thing to do,
and I certainly do.
So it's a great pleasure for me to be able
to sign this designation.
I want to congratulate all the people behind me who
have worked so hard to make this happen.
And I told them that I'm always looking
for an excuse to get outside.
(laughter)
So I hope I get a chance to roam around
this amazing landmark sometime in the future.
And with that, I'm going to sign this proclamation.
There we go. Congratulations.
(applause)