Sáttítla: Northern California haven for water & wildlife
Sáttítla has ecological and cultural significance and provides clean drinking water to millions of people.
Sáttítla, commonly known as Medicine Lake Highlands, is a 200,000-acre area in Northern California near Mount Shasta. Overlapping the Shasta-Trinity, Klamath, and Modoc National Forests, Sáttítla encompasses lava flows, lakes, ice caves and sugar pine forests. A wide range of critters like blue ribbon trout, black bears, Sierra martens, bald eagles and northern spotted owls live in the area.
Sáttítla is also known for its aquifer that collects snow. The water is then transferred from Fall River Springs to Lake Shasta and eventually reaches millions of people in San Francisco Bay who count on it as a source of clean drinking water.
Sáttítla has been the home to tribes for more than 10,000 years. The Pit River, Modoc, Wintu, Karuk, Klamath, Yana, and Shasta tribes are culturally tied to the forest, historically dependent on the land for their livelihood, values and traditional practices. Their relationship to the land is the reason that members of these communities have been strong advocates for the need to preserve and protect Sáttítla.
If Sáttítla were protected as a national monument, the area would be protected from future development. The President has the power, granted by the Antiquities Act, to designate national monuments.
California Senators Laphoza Butler, Alex Padilla and Representative Adam Schiff have supported the Tribes’ proposal for a Sáttítla National Monument, as has the California state legislature.
Topics
Authors
Laura Deehan
State Director, Environment California Research & Policy Center
Laura directs Environment California’s work to tackle global warming, protect the ocean, and stand up for clean air, clean water and open spaces. Laura served on the Environment California board for two years before stepping into the state director role. Most recently, she directed the public health program for CALPIRG, another organization in The Public Interest Network, where she led campaigns to get lead out of school drinking water and toxic chemicals out of cosmetics. Prior to that, Laura ran Environment California citizen outreach offices across the state and, as the Environment California field director, she led campaigns to get California to go solar, ban single use plastic grocery bags, and go 100 percent renewable. Laura lives with her family in Richmond, California, where she enjoys hiking, yoga and baking.
Ellen Montgomery
Director, Public Lands Campaign, Environment America
Ellen runs campaigns to protect America's beautiful places, from local beachfronts to remote mountain peaks. She sits on the Steering Committee of the Arctic Defense Campaign and co-coordinates the Climate Forests Campaign. Ellen previously worked as the organizing director for Environment America’s Climate Defenders campaign and managed grassroots campaign offices across the country. Ellen lives in Denver, where she likes to hike in Colorado's mountains.
Michell Valencia-Ortega
Environnent California intern
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