WASHINGTON, DC - Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Carole King testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands at a hearing on the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA) H.R.1975 in Washington, DC. The hearing was held on October 18, 2007 at 2pm Eastern Time.

Sponsored by Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Christopher Shays (R-CT) with bi-partisan co-sponsorship from 114 other Representatives, NREPA will protect some of America's most beautiful and ecologically important lands while mitigating the effects of global warming on species in the Northern Rockies ecosystem. NREPA will save taxpayers $245 million over a ten-year period by managing the land as wilderness. Additionally, more than 2,300 jobs would be created in the region through NREPA's program to restore Northern Rockies habitats to their natural state.

"When I first started educating legislators about the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, most people didn't even know what an ecosystem was," Multiple Grammy-winner King said. "Today, with the perils of global warming on everyone's mind, NREPA is a win/win for the planet and for the American taxpayer."

"NREPA is a common sense bill that will save taxpayer dollars, create thousands of good jobs, and protect vast expanses of treasured public land – land that belongs to the American people," said Rep. Maloney. "NREPA's time has come. I want to thank Chairman Rahall and Subcommittee Chairman Grijalva for holding the first hearing on this important issue in nearly a decade."

Rep. Shays added, "The Northern Rocky Mountains are one of America's great wilderness preserves - a living treasure, and home to a critical component of the continent's ecosystem. It is imperative we preserve and protect our environment. We simply will not have a world to live in if we continue our neglectful ways."

For more information on the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act go to: www.wildrockies.org/nrepa.

The bill, now identified as H.R. 3334 can be found at: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.01975: