The Cotoni-Coast Dairies property north of Santa Cruz has earned National Monument status.
Just days before leaving the White House, President Obama designated three new national monuments and expanded two others including the California Coastal Monument. That expansion adds six coastal sites including the 5,800 acre Cotoni-Coast Dairies property near Davenport.
“This is a historic day for Cotoni and Amah Mutsun descendants. Our Cotoni ancestors lived on these lands for thousands of years as they raised their families and stewarded the lands so they provided for all living things,” said Amah Mutsun Tribal Band Chairman Valentin Lopez in a press release. “The National Monument designation will protect and conserve the beauty and spirituality of this land for all future generations. "
Also included in the California Coastal expansion are land in Humboldt County and Piedras Blancas near San Simeon. Also added were some offshore rocks and an island in Orange County.
Thursday President Obama also expanded the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, which is partially in Northern California. And he created the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument in Alabama; Freedom Riders National Monument in Anniston, Alabama; and, Reconstruction Era National Monument in South Carolina.
