[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1235 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1235
Recognizing the importance of engagement with the Latino community to
get into the outdoors and participate in activities to protect United
States natural resources, and expressing support for the designation of
the third week of July as ``Latino Conservation Week''.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 20, 2022
Ms. Barragan (for herself, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. San Nicolas, Ms. Ocasio-
Cortez, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Gallego, Mr. Cardenas, Ms.
Escobar, Mr. Ruiz, and Mr. Grijalva) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the importance of engagement with the Latino community to
get into the outdoors and participate in activities to protect United
States natural resources, and expressing support for the designation of
the third week of July as ``Latino Conservation Week''.
Whereas ``Latino Conservation Week'' was created by the Hispanic Access
Foundation to support the Latino community getting into the outdoors and
participating in activities to protect United States natural resources;
Whereas, during this week, Latino community, nonprofit, faith-based, and
government organizations and agencies across the United States will go
on hiking or camping outings in National Conservation Lands, national
monuments, and parks and other public lands, learn about conservation
efforts in their community, and show their support for permanently
protecting United States land, water, and air;
Whereas local activities include communitywide public events, private events,
film screenings, discussions, ground hikes, birdwatching, picnics,
neighborhood cleanups, and more;
Whereas national monument designations celebrate the Latino community's
contribution to this country, contribute to local economies, and provide
beautiful spaces for outdoor recreation;
Whereas 78 percent of Latinos say they have directly experienced the effects of
climate change;
Whereas two-thirds of Latinos say air pollution and contaminants in drinking
water are serious threats to the health of their families;
Whereas Latino children in the United States are twice as likely to die from
asthma attacks due to the disproportionate pollution burdens their
communities are exposed to;
Whereas Latinos are more likely to lack access to health insurance and thus are
less able to treat health ailments caused by exposure to poor air
quality;
Whereas access to natural spaces--
(1) provides mental and physical health benefits;
(2) can save almost three dollars in health care on every dollar spent
on creating and maintaining park trails; and
(3) helps mitigate climate change, extreme heat, and air pollution, and
can aid economic recovery;
Whereas communities of color in the United States are 3 times as likely as White
communities to live in nature-deprived places, which means there are far
fewer parks, forests, streams, beaches, and other natural places near
Black, Latino, and Asian communities;
Whereas Latinos are 21 percent more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to live in
urban heat islands, or areas dominated by asphalt and concrete without
access to parks that provide shade for urban cooling;
Whereas public lands are a key component of the Latino identity, and they weave
a narrative of the diverse and complex history of the Nation;
Whereas 84 percent of Latino voters in the West, and 89 percent in the
Chesapeake region, agree that the United States should create new
national parks, national monuments, national wildlife refuges, and
Tribal protected areas to protect historic sites or areas for outdoor
recreation;
Whereas 87 percent of Latino voters in the West, and 89 percent in the
Chesapeake region, support setting a national goal of conserving 30
percent of United States land, waters, and ocean by the year 2030;
Whereas 89 percent of Latino voters in the Chesapeake region support the
creation of new marine sanctuaries to protect ocean waters and wildlife;
Whereas 92 percent of Latino voters support addressing the backlog of
infrastructure repairs, reducing risk of wildfires, and natural resource
protection on national public lands such as national parks by providing
jobs and training to unemployed people;
Whereas Latinos are the largest minority group in America, with over 60,500,000
people making up 18 percent of the Nation's population, and are
projected to become nearly one-third of the population by 2050;
Whereas 4,400,000 Latinos participate in fishing, averaging more outings per
year than the general fishing population;
Whereas all communities should have equitable access to nearby green space, the
ability to reach it, and features that honor and welcome diverse
languages, inclusive histories, and uses of parkland; and
Whereas the third week of July is an appropriate week to designate as ``Latino
Conservation Week'': Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the Latino community's commitment to
conservation and the importance of access to nature and getting
outdoors;
(2) recognizes that the future of public lands depends on
engaging and welcoming diverse youth and Latino communities
that already deeply care about the environment and feel a moral
obligation to take care of it; and
(3) supports the designation of ``Latino Conservation
Week''.
<all>