Office of the Press Secretary
                            (Grand Canyon, Arizona)
______________________________________________________________________
 For Immediate Release January 11, 2000
 

                            REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
                   AT ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW NATIONAL MONUMENTS

                        Grand Canyon Hopi Point, Arizona

11:15 A.M. MST
 

     THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thank you, good morning. I know
we're doing the right thing, because look at the day we've got.
(Laughter.) We've got the good Lord's stamp of approval on this great
day.

     Ann, thank you for your words and for you life and your example.
Superintendent Arnberger, thank you and all the staff at Grand Canyon
National Park. And through you I'd like to thank all the people who work
for all of our national parks. I have spent quite a good deal of time as
President in the national parks of America. And I grew up in one. I am,
I suppose, therefore, more personally indebted to the people who give
their lives to the park service than perhaps any of my predecessors. But
I want to thank you.

     I also want to thank all the people here from the Bureau of Land
Management for the work they do and for the remarkable partnership that
will be launched here. We have worked very hard these last seven years to
try to get these two agencies to work together, to support each other, to
believe in each other and to have common objectives. And I think we've
made a lot of progress. So I want to thank the BLM people who are here,
as well. Give them all a hand, thank you. (Applause.)

     I want to thank the environmental groups who are here. I want to
welcome the children who are here. We have children from Grand Canyon
Middle School and St. Mary's Middle School and we welcome them. They are
a lot about what today is all about. I want to thank Congressman Ed
Pastor, of Arizona; Congressman Sam Farr, from California, for joining me;
and former Congresswoman Karen English, from Arizona, for being here.
Thank you. And I want to thank all the people from the White House who
supported me in this decision -- my Chief of Staff, John Podesta, who is
here; and the head of our Council of Environmental Quality, George
Frampton.

     I want to thank someone I want to acknowledge particularly who worked
with Secretary Babbitt on this, his counselor, Molly McUsik, who played a
big role in what we celebrate today -- she's not here because she's
celebrating an even bigger production: yesterday she gave birth to her
son, Benjamin, so she couldn't be here, but I want to acknowledge her and
her service. (Applause.)

     And, finally, I want to say this is, as you can see, a special day for
Bruce Babbitt; not only because he has been a devoted champion of the
Antiquities Act and of protecting land, but also because he is former
Governor of Arizona. And when we served together as governors we made it
a habit, Hillary and I did, at least once a year at these governors'
meetings to have dinner with Bruce and Hattie Babbitt. And he was giving
me the speech that he gave here today 15 or 20 years ago. (Laughter.)
I've heard Bruce's speech a lot now, but it gets better every time he
gives it. (Laughter.)

     Our country has been blessed by some outstanding Secretaries of the
Interior -- Gifford Pinchot, Harold Ickes. But I'll make a prediction: I
believe when our time here is done and a fair analysis of the record is
made, there will be no Secretary of the Interior in the history of the
United States who has done as much to preserve our natural heritage as
Bruce Babbitt, and I thank him for that. (Applause.)

     Secretary Babbitt talked about Theodore Roosevelt's role. You might
be interested to know that it was exactly 92 years ago today, on January
11, 1908, that he designated the Grand Canyon as one of our nation's first
national monuments. Now, the first light falls on the 21st century and
this breathtaking landscape he helped to protect. None of you who can see
what is behind me can doubt the wisdom of that decision. And so it is
altogether fitting that on this day and in this place we continue that
great journey.

     This morning, on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, I designated three
new national monuments and the expansion of a fourth, to make sure more of
the land that belongs to the American people will always be enjoyed by
them. What a remarkable place this Canyon is. It is in so many ways the
symbol of our great natural expanse, our beauty and our spirit.

     Thirty years ago for the first time I watched the sun set over the
Grand Canyon for over two hours. This morning I got up and for about an
hour I watched the sun rise over the Canyon for the first time. In both
cases, watching the interplay of the changing light against the different
layers and colors of the Canyon left me with a lifetime memory I will
always cherish. Millions and millions of Americans share those memories,
and a love of our natural treasure.

     In fact, I believe maybe if there's one thing that unites our
fractious, argumentative country across generations and parties and across
time, it is the love we have for our land. We know, as President
Roosevelt said, we cannot improve upon this landscape. So the only thing
we can add to it is our protection. President Roosevelt challenged us to
live up to that ideal, to see beyond today or next month or next year. He
said, the one characteristic more essential than any other is foresight;
it should be the growing nation with a future which takes the long look
ahead.

     I am very grateful for the opportunities that Vice President Gore and
I have had to build on President Roosevelt's legacy, to take that long
look ahead, to chart a new conservation vision for a new century. From
our inner cities to our pristine wild lands, we have worked hard to ensure
that every American has a clean and healthy environment. We've rid
hundreds of neighborhoods of toxic waste dumps; taken the most dramatic
steps in a generation to clean the air we breathe, to control emissions
that endanger the health of our children and the stability of our climate.
 We have made record investments in science and technology to protect
future generations from the threat of global warming. We've worked to
protect and restore our most glorious natural resources, from the Florida
Everglades to California's redwoods and Mojave Desert to Escalante to
Yellowstone.

     And we have, I hope, finally put to rest the false choice between the
economy and the environment, for we have the strongest economy perhaps in
our history, with a cleaner environment -- cleaner air, cleaner water,
more land set aside, safer food. I hope finally we have broken the hold
of an old and now wrong idea the ta nation can only grow rich and stay
rich if it continues to despoil its environment and burn up the
atmosphere. With new conservation technologies and alternative energy
sources, that is simply no longer true. It has not been true for quite
some years now, but it is only know coming to be recognized. And I can
tell you that in the next few years, no one will be able to deny the fact
that we will actually have more stable, more widespread, more long-term
economic growth if we improve the environment.

     We are on the verge -- the Detroit Auto Show this year is going to
showcase cars that get 70 and 80 miles a gallon, with fuel injection and
dual fuel sources. Before you know it, we will crack the chemical
barriers to truly efficient production of bio-mass fuels, which will
enable us to produce eight or nine gallons of bio-mass fuels with only one
gallon of oil. That will be the equivalent of getting cars that use --
get 160 miles to a gallon of gasoline. And this is just the beginning.

     We built a low income working family housing project in the Inland
Empire out in California, in cooperation with the National Home Builders,
with glass in the windows that lets in four or five times as much light
and keeps out four or five times as much heat and cold. And we promised
the people on modest incomes that if they moved into these homes their
energy bills would be, on average, 40 percent lower than they would have
been in a home of comparable size. I can tell you that after two years,
they're averaging 65 percent below that. So, therefore, their usage is
much lower. We are just beginning.

     So I ask all of you not only to celebrate this happy day, but to see
it in the larger context of our common responsibility and our opportunity
to preserve this planet. (Applause.)

     Now, to the matter at hand. We began this unforgettable morning on
the edge of this magnificent park. The deep canyons, rugged mountains and
isolated buttes of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon tell a story written
over the course of billions of years, illustrated in colorful vistas and
spectacular detail. It is a lonely landscape, a vast and vital area of
open space which, as Secretary Babbitt said, includes a critical watershed
for the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon.

     Today we protect more than a million acres of this land. That is an
area larger than Yosemite Park -- for America's families we designated as
the Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument. (Applause.) This
effectively doubles the size of protected land around the Grand Canyon.
Second, we act to promote some of the most significant late, prehistoric
sites in the American southwest.

     In the shadow of Phoenix there lies a rough landscape of mesas and
deep canyons rich in archaeological treasures; distinctive art etched into
boulders and cliff faces; and stone masonry pueblos, once inhabited by
several thousand people centuries ago. As the suburbs of Phoenix creep
ever closer to this space, we act to protect history and heritage. For
America's families, we designate this land the Agua Fria National
Monument. (Applause.)

     Third, we are protecting thousands of small islands, rock outcroppings
and exposed reefs along California's splendid coastline. These are natural
wonders and they're also the habitat and nesting ground for sea mammals
and hundreds of thousands of sea birds, forced from the shore because of
development. Today, we act to protect all the coastal islands, reefs and
rocks off California now owned by the federal government, designating them
the California Coastal National Monument. Help Congressman Farr there
clap. (Applause.)

     Fourth, and finally, we will expand California's Pinnacles National
Monument, created by President Roosevelt in 1908. Pinnacle is about two
hours from Silicon Valley, but it's a world away. It includes soaring
spires from the ancient volcano. It's mountain caves, desert and
wilderness are home to abundant wildlife and a haven for campers, climbers
and hikers. For one and all, Pinnacles is a sanctuary from sprawl. And
for one and all, we act to keep it that way. (Applause.)

     Now, let me say again, all these areas are now owned by the federal
government. Secretary Babbitt's recommendation that they be protected
came as a result of careful analysis and close consultation with local
citizens, state and local officials, members of Congress.

     Clearly, these lands represent many things to many people. In
managing the new monuments, we will continue to work closely with the
local communities to ensure that their views are heard and their interests
are respected. This is not about locking lands up; it is about freeing
them up, from the pressures of development and the threat of sprawl, for
all Americans for all time. (Applause.)

     I have said many times that the new century finds America with an
unprecedented opportunity and, therefore, an unprecedented responsibility
for the future -- an opportunity and a responsibility rooted in the fact
that never before in my lifetime, anyway, has our country enjoyed at one
time so much economic prosperity, social progress, with the absence of
internal crisis or external threat to our existence. Can you imagine the
sacrifices laid down by our ancestors, generation after generation after
generation, in the fond hope that one day our country would be in the
shape we are now in?

     Now, when we're in this sort of position, we have a heavier
responsibility even than our forebears did a century ago to take that long
look ahead. To ask ourselves what the next century holds, what are the
big challenges, what are the big opportunities, to dream of the future we
want for our children, and then to move aggressively to build that future.

     So I say again, there are these big challenges in the long look ahead
-- the aging of America; we'll double the number of people over 65 in the
next 30 years -- I hope to be one of them. The children of America, the
largest and most diverse group ever -- they all have to have a world-class
education, whether they live in remote areas in Arizona or the poorest
inner-city neighborhoods across America. The families of America -- most
of them are working; they need more help to balance work and parenting,
and they all need access to affordable health care and child care.
(Applause.)

     The poor of America -- it is well to remember that there are people in
places that have been left behind by this recovery. We have a strategy of
economic empowerment that should be brought to every person willing to
work. If we don't do it now, when will we ever get around to doing it.

     The world we live in is ever more interdependent, not just on the
environmental front, but in many other ways. We have to build a more
cooperative world. America is in a unique position now, with our economy,
our military strength, our political influence -- it won't last forever,
and it's almost impossible for us to avoid having people resent us. But
we have done our best to be responsible partners for peace and prosperity,
and for bridging the racial, religious, and ethnic gaps that tear apart so
much of the world. It is time for us to work with others, against the
dangers of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism, and the other
threats, and to build a better world together -- and to build one America
here at home across the lines that have divided us too deeply for too
long.

     But a big part of all of this, in my opinion, the long look ahead, is
making an absolute, firm commitment that going forward here at home in
America, and with friends and partners throughout the world, we will build
a 21st century economy that is in harmony with the environment; that we
will continue to improve and protect, even as we grow. And we have to
keep working until we convince people all over the world, in countries
that long for the level of prosperity we take for granted, that they do
not have to grow rich the way countries did in the 19th and the 20th
century; that the fastest way to grow the economy today is the most
environmentally responsible way. We owe that to the future. (Applause.)

     Taking the long look ahead, as manifest in the protections we give
today to the land around the Grand Canyon and in these other monuments is
fundamentally an act of humanity --and I might add also, an act of
humility.

     I think it's interesting that -- I'll close with this -- I had two
rather interesting experiences today only proliferally related to what
we're doing. One is, the press asked me whether I saw this as a legacy
item, as if that was the reason for doing it. I said, well, I've been
working on this stuff for seven years, now. And I grew up in a national
park; I believe in what I'm doing today.

     But I'll say again, this is an act of humility for all of us. When we
were flying today over to the North Rim, when we got further west along
the Canyon, Bruce looked at me and he said, see, there's some dormant
volcanoes, and you can see the residue of the ash. And I said, when did
that volcano erupt? He said, oh, not very long ago, 10,000 or 20,000
years. And if you look out here you see, 10,000 or 20,000 years from now,
if the good Lord lets us all survive as a human race, no one will remember
who set aside this land on this day. But the children will still enjoy
it. (Applause.)

     So I say to all of you, I hope you will go forth from this place today
with a renewed dedication to the long look ahead; with a renewed sense of
pride and gratitude; with a sense that we have reaffirmed our humanity as
well as our devotion to our natural home; and a sense of humility that we
are grateful, we are fortunate, and we are obligated to take the long look
ahead.

     Thank you and God bless you. (Applause.)

                                     END