In his last weeks in office, President Barack Obama designated two national monuments in an effort to conserve environmentally and culturally significant natural areas. The monuments are situated in Nevada and Utah and make up more than 1.6 million acres of extraordinary nature in America’s wild west.
Bears Ears, Utah
In southeast Utah, two rocky buttes, well over a mile high, look out over sandstone mesas, towering cliffs and vast canyons. The buttes are known as Bears Ears and are now the namesake of the region encompassing them and their neighborhood of natural wonders. With a total area of 1.35 million acres, Bears Ears is one of the largest national monuments in the continental U.S.
New, breathtaking vistas appear at every turn here — from lush forests and rivers carving through sandstone to great bluffs and caverns hiding rock art and cultural sites. You will find even more archaeological sites here than in all of Utah’s national parks combined. Most sites exhibit primitive Native American artifacts, making this area both historically and culturally significant. Even now, local Native American tribes look to Bears Ears for peaceful refuge to perform ceremonies and healing rituals and to gather medicinal herbs.
Conservationists and Native American tribes joined forces and spent years creating a proposal for the Bears Ears National Monument, which became reality in December. Its monument status protects the vast wilderness area from new development and preserves local indigenous peoples’ way of life.
This new national monument is managed by a unique combination of parties: the Bureau of Land Management, the United States Forest Service and an alliance of five local Native American tribes (the Navajos, Hopis, Zunis, Utes of the Uintah Ouray and Ute Mountain Utes). President Obama established such a committee to ensure proper care of Bears Ears through input of tribal expertise.
Gold Butte, Nevada
Spray paint on rock formations, bullet holes in historic petroglyphs and signs of reckless off-road vehicle use all have been documented at Gold Butte in the past two years. On Dec. 28, 2016, President Obama designated this scenic region northeast of Las Vegas a national monument, recognizing its desperate need for preservation.
Parts of Gold Butte are already labeled Areas of Critical Environmental Concern due to the area’s fragility and environmental importance. This desert landscape is vital and delicate habitat for a multitude of plants and animals, including desert tortoises and bighorn sheep, and sensitive native plants like the Las Vegas bearpoppy.
Nevadan residents love to visit this scenic spot. Gold Butte is the perfect setting for camping, hiking, bird-watching and more. Plus, the area is home to numerous pieces of rock art, pioneer-era artifacts, petroglyphs and historic mining sites. These fascinating pieces of Nevada’s past have now found the safety they need.
The 300,000-acre site at Gold Butte will now be afforded further land management attention, including proper law enforcement. Site-specific information will be available at Gold Butte to help locals and tourists alike act as careful visitors here.
The Why
“Today’s actions will help protect this cultural legacy and will ensure that future generations are able to enjoy and appreciate these scenic and historic landscapes,” Obama said in statement after signing the documents to officially designate these two national treasures as monuments.
There is no denying the cultural, historical and environmental significance of both of these new national monuments, though some oppose the designation due to consequent limitations on development and recreation. Utah’s governor and other state leaders were against Bears Ears becoming a national monument, and farmers and ranchers in Nevada hoped to keep Gold Butte open for agricultural use.
Many believe this to be an effort by outgoing President Obama to preserve significant natural environments before incoming President-elect Donald Trump takes over this month. Trump’s environmental practices and policies cause concern for conservationists, making this national monument designation a sigh of relief for those in favor.
Several residents and politicians in both Utah and Nevada argue this designation, calling it a federal land grab. It is unprecedented to erase a national monument designation, though naysayers are hoping Trump will follow through with his promises to reverse many of Obama’s environmental policies in office.
Presidents are given the power to protect public lands as monuments through the 1906 Antiquities Act. After controversy between state and federal government over the new national monuments, it is likely that this act is in jeopardy.
What do you think? Was making Bears Ears and Gold Butte national monuments a good idea, or should this designation be overturned?
Feature image courtesy of Shutterstock.com