Tuleyome's Policy Corner - Protecting Our Lands

Sandy Schubert • April 25, 2023

Protecting Molok Luyuk continues to be a priority. These rugged public lands are on the eastern side of Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument. Commanding views in all four directions, this landscape is home to great biodiversity, multiple tectonic plates that can be traversed in hours, amazing wildlife and is sacred to local indigenous tribes.


The Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Expansion Act was reintroduced by Senators Padilla and Feinstein (S 683). And Representatives Garamendi and Thompson (HR 1396). As before, the bill adds the adjacent Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands of Molok Luyuk to the Monument, renames the area from Walker Ridge to Molok Luyuk (Condor Ridge in Patwin), requires a management plan for the Monument, and ensures co-management with federally recognized tribes.


Support for the expansion continues to grow. Local business, officials and community members, the conservation and recreation communities support the expansion, as do the BLM, the state of California, local, state and federal elected representative and area tribes. However, even with overwhelming bi-partisan support, we know that things can get stopped in Congress. That is why our Senators and Representatives have already written to President Biden asking him to protect Molok Luyuk through the Antiquities Act if Congress does not take action. This request was also made by the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, whose ancestral lands include Molok Luyuk. Tuleyome and a coalition of dozens of organizations support these requests.



We continue to work in our communities and with our Congressional champions to build support. Just over the last couple of weeks we hosted several wildflower tours to showcase the beauty of Molok Luyuk. While the wildflowers took center stage, a ride along Molok Luyuk introduces you to all of its wonders: geologic, paleontological and hydrological, flowers, wildlife, biodiversity and connectivity, wild and scenic, recreational, historic and tribal cultural. We had California state BLM staff, journalists and photographers, Congressional and state advisors, along with conservation partners and tribal representatives.

And, we are hopeful. The legislation has bi-partisan support. President Biden has committed to protecting 30 percent of federal lands and waters by 2030, and is taking steps in that direction. In March, designated the Avi Kwa Ame in Nevada and Castner Range in Texas as national monuments. Let’s protect Molok Luyuk next.


How can you help? In many ways.



  • Send a letter of support to the President, letting him know you want him to protect Molok Luyuk. Individual letters are always best. Here’s a sample in case it’s helpful. If you do send your own letter, please share it with Tuleyome – we are gathering up support.
  • If you’re an organization or a business, you can sign on to our organizational support letter.
  • If you’re just too swamped to do that, then sign our petition in support of Molok Luyuk.
  • If you have extra time and want to volunteer, contact us!


Help us protect Molok Luyuk. Together, we can do it!


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As the tenth anniversary of the establishment of Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument, July 10 th , approaches, I find myself reflecting on how we got here and what our public lands mean to us as individuals and as a nation. Our lands defined, and define, our nation. “O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!” At a time when our nation is getting more partisan and we see more anger in the news, it's important to remember that our public lands are not a partisan issue. They belong to all of us, they are important to all of us, and they are for everyone. Our public lands are for hikers and bikers, hunters and photographers, people and puppy dogs, wheelchairs and OHVs. They are for Republicans, Democrats, Independents, decline to states and folks that don’t care about politics. They are for people of all colors, genders, religions, shades and stripes. They are for citizens, immigrants and visitors. They are for mountain lions and tadpoles, bears and hummingbirds, otters and spiders. They are our public lands. The belong to all of us and we belong to them. Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument represents America – a diverse community of people with different interest and beliefs who came together to protect something special. It started out as a mere idea. First, it was just a handful of kindred folks but then more and more joined in soon creating a crescendo of motivated and united voices. It grew until it was a community, a movement, fighting together to protect a place that we all love. We all fought for our Monument. People from all walks of life: hunters, politicians, decision-makers, conservationists, recreationists, scientists, businesses, veterans, community and tribal leaders. Government officials from all levels of government and all parties joined us. Dreamers and planners, lovers and fighters locked arms. We all stood together and fought for Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument and Molok Luyuk. And look at what we accomplished together! We protected 344,476 acres in the heart of the Northern Inner Coastal Range. We protected a place whose geology and botany are so magnificent that people come from the world over to see and study them. We protected a place so beautiful it takes your breath away with its rare wetlands and meadows full of wildflowers, its vistas that last for hundreds of miles and its night sky that illuminates every detail of the Milky Way. We protected a place where major rivers flow and streams wander throughout the countryside. We protected tule elk, bald and golden eagles, perch, frogs, bears and salamanders. We protected a place steeped in millennia of Native American culture and history and that is one of the most linguistically diverse in California. We protected our special places, our public lands. And we did it, all of us together. This is what we can do when we remember that despite all of our differences, we are one nation, indivisible. America the Beautiful O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea! O beautiful for pilgrim feet, Whose stern, impassioned stress A thoroughfare for freedom beat Across the wilderness! America! America! God mend thine every flaw, Confirm thy soul in self-control, Thy liberty in law! O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved And mercy more than life! America! America! May God thy gold refine, Till all success be nobleness, And every gain divine! O beautiful for patriot dream That sees beyond the years Thine alabaster cities gleam Undimmed by human tears! America! America! God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea! by Katharine Lee Bates Happy 4 th of July! -Sandy Schubert Executive Director