State officials joined the president as the areas were opened for grazing, recreation, logging, and other developments.
President Donald Trump issued proclamations this week to reduce the size of two Utah national monuments. Bears Ears National Monument is being decreased from 1.36 million acres to 121,000 acres. The Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is being reduced from 1.87 million acres to 181,500.
The White House stated that, under the Antiquities Act, “Rightsizing these national monuments allows for the restoration of public access and traditional multiple-use activities on these Federal lands and waters, such as grazing, timber harvest, fishing, hunting, resource development, infrastructure upgrades, and motorized recreation.”
Governor Spencer Cox, Senators Mike Lee and John Curtis, and other Utah legislators were present for the president’s signing.
Governor Cox said, “We definitely care about protecting these antiquities and will continue to do so. The problem is with these giant monument designations, there are resources that come with those. We’re grateful that the president has made a determination that we need to rightsize these monuments.”
The governor added that the president’s action makes “the monuments more manageable so that we have the resources necessary to continue to protect these antiquities.”
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For President Trump as he addresses the expanse of monuments and reduces federal government control of public lands.
- For state governing officials as they seek to access and develop lands previously stewarded by the executive branch.
Sources: Reuters, The White House
