WASHINGTON — With just days left in office, President Joe Biden is establishing two new national monuments in California, part of his bid to cement his environmental and conservation legacy as he closes out a more than five-decades long career in politics.

What You Need To Know

  • With just days left in office, President Joe Biden is establishing two new national monuments in California,  the Chuckwalla National Monument and the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument, as part of his bid to cement his environmental and conservation legacy as he closes out a more than five-decades long career in politics 
  • Together, the White House says the two monuments will cover 848,000 acres of land, safeguarding clean water for the California communities and preserving the cultural significance of the grounds to Tribal Nations
  • The move, part of his goal to conserve at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 through his America the Beautiful initiative, brings the total amount of U.S. lands and waters Biden has protected to 674 million acres, more than any previous administration, according to the White House
  • But it comes less than two weeks before Biden will leave the White House and hand over the reins to President-elect Donald Trump

Biden was in Los Angeles on Tuesday and was scheduled to travel to the Eastern Coachella Valley desert community of Thermal to deliver remarks and sign the proclamations designating the Chuckwalla National Monument, located just south of Joshua Tree National Park, as well as the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument in northern California. 

The stop was canceled last-minute, however, due to what the White House said was weather issues. Biden will speak on the designation of the two new monuments back in Washington next week instead, the White House added. 

Together the two monuments will cover 848,000 acres of land, safeguarding clean water for the California communities and preserving the cultural significance of the grounds to Tribal Nations, the White House noted. 

The Chuckwalla National Monument specifically, the White House says, will help Biden create the “largest corridor of protected lands in the continental United States.” The Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor will span nearly 18 million acres and 600 miles.

The area that will make up the monument is home to more than 50 rare species of plants and animals while the land encompassing the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument houses rare flora and fauna, such as the northern spotted owl and long-toed salamander, according to the White House. 

The move, part of Biden's goal to conserve at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 through his America the Beautiful initiative, brings the total amount of U.S. lands and waters Biden has protected to 674 million acres, more than any previous administration, according to the White House. 

On Monday, the president announced he was moving to ban new offshore oil and gas drilling in most U.S. coastal waters. 

But the announcements come less than two weeks before Biden will leave the White House and hand over the reins to President-elect Donald Trump, who has already pledged to “immediately” reverse Monday’s oil and gas drilling decision, although such a move may not be easy.