Laris Karklis, Bonnie Berkowitz and Tim Meko report that the New Administration drastically reduced the size of two national monuments in Utah on Monday, potentially opening about 2 million acres of public land to mineral extraction and other activities in a state in which about 65 percent of all land is federally owned. The sites, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments, contain rich troves of archaeological and paleontological finds in addition to large deposits of coal, uranium, oil and gas. The day after the announcement, Utah’s governor and several House Republicans said the changes would not lead to wider energy development. One, Rep. John Curtis (R-Utah), proposed banning mineral extraction within the original boundaries of Bears Ears. “The idea that we’re going to give these over to oil and gas companies is a false narrative,” said Rep. Rob Bishop (R-Utah), chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.
Bureau of Land Management maps show high-to-moderate oil and gas development potential in much of the original Bears Ears footprint, which encompasses more than 100,000 archaeological and Native American cultural sites, such as cliff dwellings and ancient petroglyphs. Most of the areas thought to have the most oil and gas — and the few existing drilling leases — are outside the new boundaries, according to the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.
The Red Canyon area of Bears Ears is known for its Triassic Period fossils, and it also contains extensive uranium deposits. Uranium mines were humming around southeastern Utah during the Cold War but have shuttered in recent years as nuclear power has fallen out of favor (FACT CHECK: NUCLEAR POWER HAS NOT FALLEN OUT OF FAVOR). Dormant mines and mining leases dot the area. The owners of the now-closed Daneros Mine, which lies three miles from the old Bears Ears border, have planned a large expansion that is opposed by the Navajo Nation and environmental groups. Ore would be trucked 62 miles through the monument to White Mesa, the country’s only operating uranium mill.....(Sounds like the Indian groups are interfering normal commerce). But, a group of House Republicans (WHAT GROUP?) proposed prohibiting mineral extraction in the original Bears Ears monument area.
(Bottom line concerning the country's Indian lands, no one is planning to interfere with them, other than for providing huge $ support via many programs. The regions' beauty should be made accessible and available to all U.S. citizens, not just Indians. Mining can be managed not to destroy any of the beauty).
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