Nevada governor slams Biden for locking up mineral-rich land in new monuments

Governor Joe Lombardo (R-NV) criticized President Joe Biden on Tuesday for designating 500,000 acres of mineral-rich land in Nevada and Texas as national monuments. He said the move would impact Nevadans for generations.

Lombardo said his office had not received any response from the White House regarding his concerns before the announcement of the 506,000-acre Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in southern Nevada.

Biden announced the creation of the Avi Kwa Ame and Castner Range national monuments in El Paso, Texas, on Tuesday. The projects will severely limit development in the areas, including limits to drilling, mining, and possibly the construction of renewable energy facilities. Nevada contains numerous lithium deposits, a crucial component for green energy technologies.

Lombardo stated, “This kind of ‘Washington Knows Best’ policy might win plaudits from unaccountable special interests, but it’s going to cost our state jobs and economic opportunity — all while making land more expensive and more difficult to develop for affordable housing and critical infrastructure projects. The federal confiscation of 506,814 acres of Nevada land is a historic mistake that will cost Nevadans for generations to come.”

The Avi Kwa Ame designation was done to pay homage to tribal nations that consider the area sacred, declared the White House. Avi Kwa Ame is home to one of the world’s largest Joshua tree forests and is part of Biden’s initiative to conserve at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030.

In a separate announcement, Biden instructed Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to consider initiating a new national marine sanctuary designation to protect all U.S. waters around the Pacific Remote Islands.

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