WASHINGTON -- Congressman Buck McKeon, R-Calif., entered legislation in the House of Representatives Friday that would designate a stretch of the Amargosa River on the California side a wild and scenic river.

U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., introduced a companion bill in the Senate.

The designation would fulfill a dream for many years of some residents of southeastern Inyo County like Brian Brown, owner of the China Ranch Date Farm, and a founding member of the Amargosa Conservancy. It would protect flows on 23 miles of the river from Shoshone to Dumont Dunes.

Brown said the designation would mandate the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to protect the surface flow of the river and could open up funding to establish recreational trails.

The request was tied in with a bill to protect almost a half-million acres of wilderness in California. It includes 430,671 acres of wilderness including acreage in the White Mountains near the California-Nevada border and an addition to the Hoover Wilderness area in the high Sierras west of Bridgeport, Calif. Areas around the headwaters of the Owens River, along with 42,000 acres of wilderness in the San Gabriel Range in Los Angeles County would also be protected.

"I am pleased that after years of working with local leaders, wilderness activists and recreational enthusiasts we finally have a practical solution to preserving the wild heritage of the 25th Congressional District," McKeon said in a written statement.

"With this legislation we are increasing economic development by preserving land treasured by many and enhancing recreational opportunities in the area," he said.

Senator Boxer said, "Congressman Buck McKeon and I, together with countless local officials and residents, were able to forge a bipartisan compromise to protect these truly spectacular lands."

Brown said it's been a long process trying to get a bill introduced to protect the lower Amargosa River. A map was drawn up by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management back in May 2004, designating different segments of the Amargosa River for a scenic segment, a wild segment and a recreational segment.

"The good news is that the language in the Senate and the House version is exactly the same, which means there won't have to be a lot of protracted wrangling over the fine points," Brown said.

"I think it's a good bill and the fact is that Sen. Boxer and Congressman McKeon, who ideologically disagree on a lot of stuff, they were able to get together and agree on this bill," Brown said.

There will be a push now to get the bill out of committee and on the floor of the House and Senate for a vote in an abbreviated election year when many politicians are running for election, he said.

The bill will put the Amargosa wild and scenic river on the map for outdoor enthusiasts who could spur economic development in the area that's been depressed since the exodus of mining years ago, he said.

"The concept would be to protect it and the amount of water that's in there now would be protected. That's what has to stay in there which means anything upstream that affects downstream is part of BLM's concern," said conservancy executive director Tami Tripp-Massie.

The conservancy has sponsored tours of the Amargosa River for the congressional delegation and California school children, she said. The Inyo County Board of Supervisors and the local representative of the San Bernardino County board support the plan.

Susan Sorrells, a conservancy member, said recently Dumont Dunes would remain a recreational area.

"It would give us more weight when we are discussing water. If it starts to dry up, then other things are going to dry up," Sorrells said recently.

The bill shouldn't affect Amargosa Valley water users where the river flows underground, who are already subject to protests from the National Park Service, because their water use applications involve ground water, the Amargosa River legislation only protects surface flow, Brown said.

"It does not affect private land or people's ability to do anything with their land or their wells. It only designates federal land. We would hope it would be another step in the economic recovery of our area," he said.

A section was eliminated from the bill that would have limited entrances to Dumont Dunes, Brown said. Another section recognizes an off-road vehicle crossing of the Amargosa River at Sperry Wash, he said.

Rep. McKeon held a press conference during Mule Days in Bishop, Calif., over Memorial Day weekend to tout the legislation.