All Americans have something to cheer today - just a week before Earth Day - as three important conservation bills, which will protect some very special pieces of our "original Earth," move another critical step toward enactment.

More than a quarter million acres of wild land - from parts of Joshua Tree National Park in California, to the forested ridges and valleys in southwestern Virginia and Roaring Plains in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest - are closer to permanent protection, having been heard today by members of the Senate Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee.

These conservation bills are supported by Democrats and Republicans alike, as well as a broad cross-section of community members, including local elected officials, business owners, people of  faith, conservationists, and hunters and anglers - a clear reminder that wilderness is truly our common ground.

Quick passage of the California Desert and Mountain Heritage Act, introduced by Sen. Boxer (D) and Rep. Bono Mack (R); the Virginia Ridge and Valley Wilderness and National Scenic Area Act, introduced by Senators Warner (R ) and Webb (D) and Rep. Boucher (D); and the Wild Monongahela Act, introduced by Senators Byrd (D) and Rockefeller (D) and Representatives Rahall (D), Mollohan (D) and Capito (R ), would be a meaningful way to celebrate our wild earth.