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January 20th, 2022Read More »
Our e-newsletter with the latest on redrock wilderness news and events.
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January 19th, 2022
What happens when new land protections and wilderness are designated? While every land management journey is different, one thing’s for sure: the devil’s in the details.
The latest episode of Wild Utah looks at this process through 663,000 acres of land recently designated as wilderness through the 2019 John D. Dingell Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, Congress passed the Emery County Public Land Management Act. Among other things, this act created 17 new wilderness areas, the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area, and three Wild and Scenic segments on the Green River.
As a result of these new designations, there are a lot of details to consider. And because the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) must update its management plan for each of the affected areas– which includes input from the public– it’s a process that will take well over a year to complete.
So, what’s the importance of this process? What do we want to see happen in following through with these new wilderness protections? And when and how do we contact the BLM about all of this to make our voices heard? SUWA Wildlands Attorney Judi Brawer joins us in this highly informative episode that we can all look to as a guide.
Take action after this episode!
Thank you to our show supporters!
Wild Utah is made possible by the contributing members of SUWA. Thank you for your support!
Become a SUWA member today and support the Wild Utah Podcast
Subscribe to Wild Utah on your favorite podcast app!
wildutah.info/Stitcher
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wildutah.info/SpotifyTheme music is by Haley Noel Austin, with interlude music by Larry Pattis.
Dave Pacheco is the host of Wild Utah.
Post studio production and editing is by Laura Borichevsky.
A transcript of this episode is available here. -
December 15th, 2021
On December 4th, the state of Utah issued a multi-million dollar contract bid, furthering their plans to file a lawsuit challenging the restoration of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments, possibly all the way to the Supreme Court.
The state was clearly not listening to the people.
Two days prior, on December 2nd, Tribal and Indigenous community leaders, in addition to people from across Utah, protested at the state Capitol to discourage the irresponsible misuse of state tax dollars.
Tune into the latest episode of the Wild Utah podcast to hear each of the speakers from that night, recorded live at the Capitol:
- Malcom Lehi, Councilman of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe and Co-Chair of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition
- Timothy Nuvangyaoma, Chairman of the Hopi Tribe
- Davis Filfred, Co-Chair of Utah Diné Bikéyah
- Olivia Juarez, Latinx Community Organizer for SUWA
- Brooke Larsen, Utah community activist, organizer, & writer
Take action after this episode!
Resources:
Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition Statement on Bears Ears National Monument restoration
SUWA Statement on Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument restorations
Learn more about SUWA’s stance on Bears Ears here
Learn more about SUWA’s stance on Grand Staircase-Escalante here
Highlights in the News:
KSL: Utah AG’s Office picks national law firm to assist in potential monuments lawsuit
Thank you to our show supporters!
Wild Utah is made possible by the contributing members of SUWA. Thank you for your support!
Become a SUWA member today and support the Wild Utah Podcast
Subscribe to Wild Utah on your favorite podcast app!
wildutah.info/Stitcher
wildutah.info/Apple
wildutah.info/SpotifyTheme music is by Haley Noel Austin, with interlude music by Larry Pattis.
Dave Pacheco is the host of Wild Utah.
Post studio production and editing is by Laura Borichevsky.
A transcript of this episode is available here. -
December 13th, 2021
In 2019, as part of the John D. Dingell Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, Congress passed the Emery County Public Land Management Act, which designated, among other things, 17 new wilderness areas (totaling 663,000 acres), the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area, and three Wild and Scenic segments on the Green River. The measure represented a major step forward in the protection of Utah’s public lands, and it wouldn’t have happened without the support of redrock advocates like you.
As a result of these new designations, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Price field office must update its management plan for each of the affected areas—and that’s where you come in. The agency has kicked off its planning process and is asking for public input.
Muddy Creek Wilderness. Copyright Ray Bloxham/SUWA
Some management directives are clear, such as the preservation of wilderness values, and the prohibition of motorized use, mining, and oil and gas development in designated wilderness areas. Others are less clear, such as the amount of commercial recreation use allowed in the wilderness areas, as well as what activities can be allowed in the San Rafael Swell Recreation Area, along Wild and Scenic river sections, and on unprotected wilderness-quality lands. While these areas are not designated as wilderness, they are essential parts of America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act and play a crucial role in meeting the Biden administration’s goal of protecting 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030.
You have the opportunity to help shape the BLM’s management of these iconic landscapes so their natural, cultural, scenic, wildlife and other values are protected from the impacts of motorized recreation and irresponsible development.
Click here to submit your comments to the BLM today.
This “scoping” period is the first of several steps in the planning process, and it is the time when the BLM is most open to new information and ideas for management of these areas over the next several decades. This is our chance to influence how this irreplaceable redrock country will be managed for generations to come.
Please speak up by January 7, 2022, and make your voice heard!
Thank you!
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December 1st, 2021
Great news! The Navajo Nation Council has passed a resolution in support of America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act, a first-of-its-kind endorsement that acknowledges the role protecting public lands can play in combating climate change.
“Protecting our land is important to the Navajo people and we support this wilderness designation in America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act,” said Speaker Seth Damon (Bááhaalí, Chichiltah, Manuelito, Red Rock, Rock Springs, Tséyatoh). “President Biden outlined a robust policy change across the federal government to address climate change. It is imperative that the Navajo Nation work on a global level to address this growing problem that affects our oceans, air, and water.”
Comb Ridge. Copyright Tim Peterson, flown by LightHawk
Sponsored by Senator Dick Durbin and Representative Alan Lowenthal, America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act would designate more than 8 million acres of Bureau of Land Management land as wilderness, the highest form of protection for federal lands. The bill would protect iconic Utah landscapes such as Cedar Mesa, Factory Butte, the Kaiparowits Plateau, and the Greater Canyonlands area.
As the ancestral home of many Tribes, the region contains abundant and significant cultural resources. Protecting these wild landscapes would also keep a significant amount of fossil fuels in the ground, accounting for 5.7 percent of the carbon mitigation needed to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
“Our support for this Congressional bill sends a message that the Navajo Nation is concerned about climate change and the impact on our environment,” said Delegate Herman Daniels, Jr. “Since time immemorial, we have lived in the canyons, mountains, and on the mesas currently managed by the federal government that would be protected and preserved by this Congressional bill. For generations, our Indigenous people across the United States have been the original caretakers of our sacred lands and it will remain so.”
Please ask your members of Congress to support America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act today. And if any of your representatives are already cosponsors, please click here to thank them.
SUWA is committed to working with Tribes to help protect the redrock permanently. We are grateful to the Navajo Nation for their efforts to support America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act.
Add your voice by asking your members of Congress to cosponsor today!
