Outstanding - Jupiter and Piedras Blancas Lighthouses
By Sue Clark on May 3, 2008 in News 
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New Federal Protection For Two Lighthouses
May 9, 2008 - President signs bill designating Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse as an Outstanding Natural Area.
What do two lighthouses on opposite ends of the country have in common? Especially since one has all its parts in place and the other is missing its lantern? Well, they both have been named as Outstanding Natural Areas, and are just awaiting the presidential signature to formalize it. Jupiter Inlet (Florida) and Piedros Blancas (California) Lighthouses will join Yaquina Head Lighthouse with this new designation, which puts them in the same class as a national monument. Lighthouse News reported on the progress last October for Jupiter Inlet (pictured at left). Piedras Blancas was featured here in a story about the return of its lantern.
Although this designation doesn’t come with money, it does open up the possibility of more grant funding. The areas are home to threatened, endangered and special status plants and wildlife. The federal Outstanding Natural Area designation protects the lighthouse and surrounding area from being used for any other purposes than its currently use. Last month, the National Landscape Conservation Act passed Congress, which made this protection permanent and ensures that this designation could not be eliminated by a future administration.
Jupiter Inlet
The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse is part of a 126-acre region full of rich history and home to 18 special status plant and animal species. These include gopher tortoises and the threatened Florida scrub jay.
“This bill will not only protect the lighthouse; it will also preserve the unique environment surrounding the structure,” said U.S. Representative Tim Mahoney, D-Palm Beach Gardens. “It will continue to attract visitors to the area, strengthening the economy.”
Mahoney is the prime sponsor of the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area Act of 2007. It was one of the first pieces of legislation that Mahoney introduced after taking office in the beginning of 2007.
Piedras Blancas
The legislation sponsored by Rep. Lois Capps to preserve the light station, passed the California House of Representatives on April 29. It earlier passed in the Senate. Capps praised various agencies, corporations, private groups and individuals for making the light station more accessible to the public. She also lauded students at Grover Heights Elementary School in Grover Beach, whose “Pennies for Piedras” drive has raised nearly $4,000 since 2006 to help restore the light station and its 18 acre site.
The lighthouse site is a rookery for an estimated 15,000 Northern elephant seals, who were once considered extinct. It is under the care of the Bureau of Land Management, who is overseeing lighthouse restoration efforts.
Photo Credits:
- Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse from SMWalton73. Some rights reserved.
- Piedras Blancas Rock from Mike Baird. Some rights reserved.
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