Trump Promises to Gut Utah National Monuments

WASHINGTON – President Trump reportedly intends to issue an order to eviscerate protections for two of the nation’s most treasured national monuments:  Utah’s Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante.

Rhea Suh, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council, made the following statement:

“It is a disgrace that the President wants to undo the nation’s first national monument created to honor Native American cultural heritage.  And a travesty that he’s trying to unravel a century’s worth of conservation history–all behind closed doors.  The American people want these special places protected.  We will fight any illegal attempt by this administration to turn our national treasures over to private interests for polluters’ profits.”

An NRDC video on Bears Ears can be found here.

NRDC’s recent report, “America’s Monuments: Worth the Fight,” on how our monuments benefit the economy and preserve our heritage, wildlife and history, can be found here.

An interactive NRDC story map of the national monuments Secretary Zinke reviewed can be found here.

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The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 2 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Bozeman, MT, and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.