"Trump Slashes Size of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Monuments"

"SALT LAKE CITY — President Trump sharply reduced the size of two national monuments in Utah on Monday by some two million acres, the largest rollback of federal land protection in the nation’s history.

The administration shrank Bears Ears National Monument, a sprawling region of red rock canyons, by 85 percent, and cut another monument, Grand Staircase-Escalante, to about half its current size. The move, a reversal of protections put in place by Democratic predecessors, comes as the administration pushes for fewer restrictions and more development on public lands.

The decision to reduce Bears Ears is expected to set off a legal battle that could alter the course of American land conservation, putting dozens of other monuments at risk and possibly opening millions of preserved public acres to oil and gas extraction, mining, logging and other commercial activities."

Julie Turkewitz reports for the New York Times December 4, 2017.

SEE ALSO:

"Navajo Nation Promises Lawsuit Against Trump’s National Monument Rollback" (The Hill)

"Environmental, Conservation Groups Sue Trump Over Monument Changes" (CNN)

"‘The President Stole Your Land’: Patagonia, REI Blast Trump On National Monument Rollbacks" (Washington Post)

"Trump Shrinks Two Huge National Monuments In Utah, Drawing Praise And Protests" (Washington Post)

"Latest: Representatives From The Navajo, Ute And Hopi Tribes Respond To President Donald Trump’S Monument Order" (Salt Lake Tribune)

"Tribes: Trump’s Monument Order Disrespects Native People" (AP)

"Trump Takes Rare Step To Reduce 2 National Monuments in Utah" (AP)

"The Latest: Trump’s Cuts To Utah Monument Spur Lawsuit" (AP)

"Trump Orders Largest National Monument Reduction In U.S. History" (NPR)