Posted 6/16/2013
Washington State – 5/1/2013 – U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert introduced a bill in Congress that would designate a stretch of scenic landscape from Seattle to Ellensburg as a National Heritage Area.
The Mountains to Sound Greenway encompasses about 1.5 million acres of forests, peaks and wilderness that stretches along Interstate 90 from Central Washington to the Puget Sound.
Reichert said at a news conference in Issaquah Tuesday that the designation would help preserve an important piece of the state’s heritage.
National Heritage Areas are designated by Congress as places of national distinction because of their natural, historical and cultural resources. The designation encourages residents, government agencies and others to preserve the landscape. A news release said the designation would provide a flexible strategy to implement projects to preserve the landscape without affecting private property rights.
The bill, introduced April 26, would be a step toward recognizing Washington’s influence in the national movement to keep the country “clean, green and pristine,” Reichert said in the release.
According to the release, 1.4 million residents work, live and play in communities around the greenway.
“The natural wealth and beauty of the greenway represents a truly unique national gem,” Reichert said in the release.
He said the greenway has played a vital role in many industries, such as salmon, coal, timber, recreation and green energy.
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Editor’s Note: National Heritage Areas are part of UN Agenda 21 / The Wildlands Project. For more information, watch this informational video by Henry Lamb: