Status Update: Bears Ears and Grand Staircase (Episode 75)

On July 13th, President Trump signed two proclamations rolling back nearly 90% of the protected boundaries of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments — three million acres of public land opened to potential drilling, mining, and extraction. The Bears Ears Commission, an intertribal coalition, has been disbanded.

Katie Johnson, Campaigns and Engagement Manager at the Conservation Alliance, joins The Parks Podcast for an urgent conversation on what just happened, what the proclamations actually say, and what you can do right now.

In this episode: — What the proclamations actually do: boundaries, acreage, and what 90% rollback means on the ground — The Bears Ears Commission: what it was and why its disbanding matters for tribal nations — What the White House says vs. what Utah voters actually want (91% of Western voters want monuments preserved) — The false narrative: recreational use, hunting, and fishing were already allowed under monument designation — The wilderness study area catch-22: the proposed safeguard that is also under attack — What you can do right now: Monuments for All letter, contacting your representatives, and the Conservation Alliance business sign-on — Why the $1.3 trillion outdoor recreation economy gives businesses an outsized voice with this administration — What this signals for other public lands designations across the country

Take action now: — Fill out the Monuments for All letter: monumentsforall.com — Contact your representative: congress.gov/members/find-your-member — Businesses: join the Conservation Alliance sign-on at conservationalliance.com

Transcript

Missy Rentz 0:05

I'm so grateful to welcome Katie Johnson, the campaigns and engagement manager at the Conservation Alliance, to this very special episode where we're talking about a status update for the two Utah parks that are having, land removed from their protection. So Katie, welcome to the Parks podcast.

Katie Johnson 0:26

Thanks for having me. I'm grateful to be here.

Missy Rentz 0:28

So on Monday, Katie, we're diving right in, r- right

Katie Johnson 0:31

into good.

Missy Rentz 0:31

On Monday the 13th of July, President Trump signed two proclamations that reduce the protection, the land protection for two Utah National Monuments. They are Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. It's all over the news. It's huge news. What do the proclamations mean?

Katie Johnson 0:53

Yeah, it's a great question, and we've seen this on quite a few channels in the last twenty-four hours or so at the time of our chat here. Essentially these two proclamations effectively roll back almost the entirety of the boundaries of both Bears Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. the new boundaries for Grand Staircase-Escalante would encompass about a hundred and eighty-two thousand acres, and Bears Ears National Monument would be about a hundred and twenty-two thousand acres. That's about a ninety percent rollback or a reduction for, each of those two currently existing monument, boundary designations. these are larger than what we saw in twenty seventeen. We've seen some similar actions taking place, with the former administration in twenty seventeen, and, this includes about three million acres in total in the rollback. So it's, a significant, amount of land that we're talking about here. In addition to the boundary rollbacks and the acreage itself, the proclamation also disbands the Bears Ears Commission, which is an intertribal coalition, of tribal folks that help oversee the management of Bears Ears National Monument. And these proclamations are citing critical minerals needed for national security that are located within the boundaries, and ultimately, the rescission efforts will likely open these lands up to extractive activities such as drilling or mining or other developmental efforts. So, kind of a lot going on in these proclamations, but that's a summary of what we're seeing, as of these signatories.

Missy Rentz 2:18

And this is a surprise but not a surprise because there's been rumors of this for some time, but it happened very quickly. And the White House, the note that the White House put out said that it's, quote unquote, "Restoring sensible land management." Why do they think it's a sensible move, and what do they feel we should be doing with this land?

Katie Johnson 2:42

Another great question. So in the proclamation, we're seeing statements that the existing monument boundaries extend beyond, the "smallest compatible" with the proper care and management of objects to be protected within these monument boundaries. And so a lot of the lands that are being, rescinded from the boundary, locations, the management could move to state-based agencies or other agencies outside of how they're currently being managed. The statements in the proclamation also include that the monuments were too big to manage with current resources at the federal level. But meanwhile, we've been seeing, this administration gut federal agency funding and staffing, over the last several months to years. And so there's a little bit of a catch 22, with that that we're seeing as well.

Missy Rentz 3:27

And they have also talked about how this is what Utah wants. This is not what Utah wants.

Katie Johnson 3:33

Yes. So the majority of voters in Utah are hopeful that the Grand Staircase and, Bears Ears National Monument boundaries would remain intact. And across the board, 91% of Western voters believe that existing monuments, of public lands that are currently designated should remain in place. So this is a popular issue among voters, and this is a very unpopular decision based on how those voters have shown up in the past, in Utah specifically, but also across the West. This goes beyond, beyond Utah. So yes.

Missy Rentz 4:03

I think across the country. I think, just hearing people that are up in arms anywhere, that you are in the country. The other thing I think is really important about this space is it's sacred land to tribal nations, and you touched on that a little bit, but talk a little bit more about how valuable this land is to our tribal nations

Katie Johnson 4:22

I Would say one of, if not the biggest concerns that we're seeing, especially within our community and our organization. The lands within these monuments are extremely significant to tribal nations. That includes cultural sites, it includes historical landscapes and so much more. And this is devastating for tribal communities, especially hearing that the Bears Ears commission is being dismantled. That's just pulling us back in a way that, is really devastating and really tough and, just hard for our community and for the tribal communities that are seeing this firsthand.

Missy Rentz 4:53

Yeah. Okay, so what do these, proclamations do not just to this park and monuments, but to our parks and public lands more broadly? I can't help but feel like this is teeing up to even more horrific moves.

Katie Johnson 5:11

Yeah, it's, something that we're seeing, in different aspects. This Is just one rollback effort we've seen. We've seen a lot of rollbacks across different landscapes, across different methods, and this is really challenging. the entire premise of these rollbacks are based on false information, and so we're hopeful that we can elevate the truth and especially as we prepare to go to the voting booths in November for midterms, keeping all of this in mind. the current monument boundaries already allow for recreational use, hunting, fishing, grazing. There's a lot of things that have been in, in conversation. The narrative around these being prohibited is inaccurate, and so the decisions that are being made, supposedly to increase access, that access already existed. And really just trying to understand the truth and kind of share the truth out in full and help people understand what a monument designation actually is, what it allows, what it potentially prohibits if, applicable, how this is gonna impact this monument, but also future landscapes of either monument designation or other types of designations. It's worth noting, it's been stated in the proclamations and through this process that wilderness study areas will help maintain some of the protections in the acreage that's being rolled back from the monument itself, but we are also seeing attacks on wilderness study areas and those protections and those processes. While there are potential safeguards in place, we're seeing the potential for those to be rolled back as well. And so that just makes us a little bit nervous that, these safeguards may not exist for long, which is tough.

Missy Rentz 6:40

Yeah, that's scary. And I know I feel like every couple episodes we're talking about what people can do and asking them to do things. And we're doing that again now. And I think in this one you hear executive order, it's done. But that's not the case. So what can we, the listeners, do now? And what will happen, and is there a way to stop this action?

Katie Johnson 7:02

Yep. So the proclamations are signed, and they're in... The ink is dry on that. But the action to speak up for these landscapes and to talk about how this impacts you or your community or, your state or wherever you are, is still very much alive, and there's groups all over the place that are taking action and sending notes in to our elected officials and folks that are in charge of these efforts to express their disinterest and discomfort with this decision. Monuments for All has a great call to action that you can fill out and, send in your thoughts on how you feel about this decision and, they have a great kind of guided process for you to fill that out and your information to your representatives. You can also reach out directly to your elected officials and members of Congress that represent you. All of the staff contacts are easily found on congress.gov. So those are two really easy ways that folks can fill out a call to action or reach out directly. From the business side of things, the Conservation Alliance will work with our members and our Brands for Public Lands participants on a business sign-on and outreach letter. So we'll garner signatures for folks that are, just not in favor of this and expressing again the concern over this decision. And we will send that in, again, to the elected officials and folks that are ahead of the agencies that are making these choices and, really express the business sentiment around, the lack of support on this decision.

Missy Rentz 8:24

And I think that's one thing I'd love to bring up in, in learning about you all, and you are a business group, and so you really serve the business community, and how powerful businesses are in this public lands space. We have a very loud voice and I think it's important for people to understand that if your business impacts the outdoor space in any way, they can work with you all to make sure that they're getting their voice heard, too

Katie Johnson 8:55

Absolutely. The business voice right now actually has a disproportionate level of influence because this administration is very business and economic forward-facing, which we are grateful for. The economics of outdoor recreation use and the industry as a whole speak for themselves. We're a $1.3 trillion industry. That's not an insignificant amount by any means. So yes, folks can work with us. Conservation Alliance is where they can find more information, website, social media, all of those things. And, if you are a business that isn't currently in our membership, we'd love to chat with you, and, just wanna spread the word more on how businesses are speaking up for this, and then also fostering that individual engagement where it makes sense as well.

Missy Rentz 9:38

And in the show notes, we're gonna put links to everything you've said. The, to find your representative, the Monuments for All. We'll put links to, to you and to the organization in case you are a business and wanna learn how to get involved. But then also there is an individual letter link that we have, and we'll put that there. And that is so simple. You just simply go on, put your name, where you're from, submit it, and you are signed onto a letter. And that's just really easy if you don't wanna write something yourself and you know that your voice is being heard. Is there anything else we need to let people know so that they can take action right now as they're listening to this episode?

Katie Johnson 10:16

I think, to your point earlier, it's just a good reminder that these actions are positioned in a very similar frame as a lot of the other battles our conservation community is fighting right now. Efforts to keep the public out of public lands and throwing off the balance in long-held land management precedents and, the favor of a few over the many. And so now is the time to speak up. Now is the time to begin or stay galvanized and stay, on top of our messaging and speak out to what matters most to you. it all really does matter, and speaking in volumes and being in the majority, really does make a difference. And so write your letter, call your senator, call your congressperson, whatever that looks like. Take the action, and we're here to help however we can to support you in doing that so that we can all showcase what side of the coin we're on here and why this all matters for us as people, for us as businesses, for us as communities, and for our greater nation and world as a whole.

Missy Rentz 11:14

Katie, thank you so much. I know this was very last minute, but very important. I appreciate you joining us on The Parks Podcast

Katie Johnson 11:21

It's always great to be here. Happy to see you.

Missy Rentz 11:23

To learn more and to always stay updated on the latest news, be sure to follow the Conservation Alliance and The Parks Podcast on social media, and subscribe to the Parks Podcast for the latest episodes. That's it for this episode. Until next time, we'll see you in the parks

11:39

Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed today's episode, please be sure to like and share on your favorite podcast platform. Music for the parks podcast is performed and produced by Porter Hardy. For more information, please follow us at The Parks Podcast, or visit our website at TheParksPodcast.com.