The people of Utah have sent a clear message to state political leaders looking to reduce the size of federally protected lands: Take a hike.

Thanks to a campaign led by the Sierra Club's Utah Chapter, Summit County followed Salt Lake City as one of the latest jurisdictions to unanimously pass a resolution proclaiming "the irreplaceable value these lands provide to our economy, recreation, quality of life, and national heritage." The resolution is one in a series of actions that defenders of the outdoors have taken in response to the state political leadership's efforts to shave down the Grand Staircase–Escalante and Bears Ears National Monuments. (In July, the Outdoor Industry Association announced that it will move its Outdoor Retailer expo to Denver after two decades in Salt Lake City.)

Meanwhile, the Utah legislature has made a show of setting aside $4.5 million for a possible lawsuit to force the U.S. government to transfer federally protected land over to the state. Environmentalists fear that politicians want to increase industrial development or even sell the land to private interests.

At the heart of the fight are the Utah residents dedicated to protecting the land. "We feel like the land is our heritage," said Becky Yih, a volunteer for the Sierra Club's Keep Public Lands in Public Hands campaign. "These lands belong to all Americans, not the state of Utah."

This article appeared in the November/December 2017 edition with the headline "Utah Residents Stand Their Ground."