Carly Ferro 801 467 9294 or carly.ferro@sierraclub.org
Salt Lake City, UT-- Today, President Trump confirmed the worst. He will effectively eliminate Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, opening sacred lands to special interests. This action comes after over 5,000 people demonstrated support for public lands at the “Rally against Trump’s Monumental Mistake,” thousands more gathered today during the President’s speech at the Utah Capitol, and over 2.8 million public comments were collected -- 98% supporting monument protections.
The Bears Ears National Monument was protected at the behest of five sovereign Tribal Nations with strong spiritual, historical, and cultural ties to these lands.
In response, Sierra Club Utah Chapter Director, Ashley Soltysiak, released the following statement:
"The Antiquities Act does not give the President the legal authority to eliminate or reduce a national monument-- a power exclusively delegated to the U.S. Congress. This is yet another pathetic example of Trump’s continued abuse of power in support of special interests.
“This action is an unacceptable affront to the Tribal Nations who came together to protect the sacred lands of the Bears Ears National Monument.
“In 1998, Grand Staircase-Escalante was amenable to a land exchange for mineral extraction; it appears that it did not satiate special interests’ greed. Over the last twenty-six years, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and its gateway communities built up its economy through tourism. Replacing recreational landscapes with drilling pads, machinery, and public restriction stands to devastate thriving and emerging businesses and the people they support.
The national monument review and this most recent action to effectively eliminate these places in Utah is disgrace to our democracy. ”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.