Trust for Public Land on President Biden Declaring Camp Hale a National Monument 

Washington D.C. – A statement from Diane Regas, Trust for Public Land president and CEO, on President Biden’s designating Camp Hale in Colorado as a National Monument, providing permanent protections via the Antiquities Act:  

“For generations of Americans, our national monuments have been treasured places that preserve our country’s rich natural, cultural and historic resources. Trust for Public Land today celebrates President Joe Biden’s decision to create the Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument. 

Camp Hale has a rich history as the training ground for the storied 10th Mountain Division, with members of that division fighting in key World War II battles and then returning home and playing prominent roles in establishing the ski industry that today so defines Colorado. This is a legacy that deserves to be remembered, celebrated, and protected. 

Our national monuments and other public lands serve as fulcrums of history, family and ancestry. By protecting special places, like Camp Hale and Colorado’s Tenmile Range, we are deepening our shared connection to the land, and in turn, building and honoring those that came before us. Without the leadership and the community of those in Colorado, Camp Hale would not be given this permanent protection. The story of Camp Hale deserves and needs to be told. The designation of our nation’s newest national monument is a testament to the dedication and persistence of Colorado leaders like U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, Representative Joe Neguse and Governor Jared Polis, and numerous other local, county and state leaders who have long advocated for full protection of this nationally significant landscape. TPL is proud to have joined them in this mission.” 

The Trust for Public Land has contributed to the protection of more than 6,800 acres of national monuments, visited by millions of people annually, as they connect to nature, experience cultural treasures, and enjoy the outdoors. These monuments have included projects at Bandelier, California Coastal, Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers Boyhood Home, Fort Sumter, Pipestone, Rio Grande del Norte, and Stonewall, demonstrating the depth and breadth of places the Antiquities Act protects and the American stories our national monuments tell. 

Passed by Congress and signed by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906, the Antiquities Act permanently protects land that is determined to be of significant cultural, scientific, or natural value. Without it, places like the Grand Canyon or Zion National Park would never enjoy the level of protection that today enables visitors to experience their majesty. 

In recent years, TPL has worked with land managers and local communities near newly designated National Monuments, to acquire priority inholdings, clean up checkerboard ownership, or to improve and increase public access.  

### 

About The Trust for Public Land 

The Trust for Public Land creates parks and protects land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come. Millions of people live within a 10-minute walk of a Trust for Public Land park, garden, or natural area, and millions more visit these sites every year. To support The Trust for Public Land and share why nature matters to you, visit www.tpl.org.