In the morass of anti-environmental, anti-wilderness, anti-clean air and anti-clean water initiatives that have defiled the appropriations process for funding the Department of Interior, Environmental Protection Agency and Forest Service, it’s nice to see that some members of Congress are still interested in preserving America’s natural resources.

In response to a politically-motivated rider on the appropriations bill that would have forbidden the Department of Interior to spend any money on the Wild Lands policy issued by Secretary Salazar last December, Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA) resolutely offered an amendment on Wednesday to strip the bad language, restoring the Bureau of Land Management’s authority to manage lands based on their inventoried values, including wilderness characteristics. Watch him here:

The amendment failed in a voice vote (which means votes were not tallied), but before it did, Rep. John Garamendi of California and Rep. Norm Dicks of Washington made impassioned floor speeches defending the merits of the Wild Lands policy, of wilderness, and of preserving our natural heritage. Our hats go off to these representatives, who are on the Hill defending the lands we love.

Thank you Rep. Moran, Rep. Garamendi and Rep. Dicks, and keep up the great work.