Skip to content

Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance logo Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance logo white version Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance

Protecting Utah's Redrock Country
  • About
    SUWA
    • SUWA Staff
    • SUWA Board of Directors
    • Finances
    • Contact Us
    • Careers
    • Privacy Policy
  • Issues
    • America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act
    • Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
    • Bears Ears National Monument
    • Travel Plans and Off-Road Vehicles
    • Climate & 30×30
    • Recreation Management on the Colorado Plateau
    • Chaining and Vegetation Removal
    • Hoax Highways (RS 2477)
    • Dirty Fuels
    • Utah Silvestre
  • News &
    Resources
    • News
    • Blog
    • Videos
    • Podcast
    • Newsletter Archive
  • Get
    Involved
    • Act Now
    • Volunteer
    • Join a Stewardship Project
    • Sign Up for Email
    • Order a Lawn Sign
    • Events Calendar
  • Membership
    • Join
    • Renew
    • Gift Memberships
    • Monthly Giving
    • Business Members
    • Planned Giving
    • Stock Donations
    • Honorary Donations
  • Donate
  • Shop
  • Log In or Register
  • Language
    • EN
    • ES
Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Find us on Instagram

Blog

CategoriesPress Releases

SUWA Statement on the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) – 8.10.23

Aug 10th, 2023 Written by suwa

SUWA Statement on the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) – 8.10.23 August 10, 2023FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: Kya Marienfeld, Wildlands Attorney, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA); […]

Read More
CategoriesNews

SUWA Invites Redrock Supporters to 40th Anniversary Celebration on September 9 at the Natural History Museum of Utah

Aug 3rd, 2023 Written by suwa

SUWA Invites Redrock Supporters to 40th Anniversary Celebration on September 9 at the Natural History Museum of Utah August 3, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Grant Stevens, Communications Director, Southern […]

Read More
CategoriesPress Releases

SUWA Files Lawsuit to Stop the Destruction of 125,000 Acres in Utah’s West Desert 

Aug 1st, 2023 Written by suwa

SUWA Files Lawsuit to Stop the Destruction of 125,000 Acres in Utah’s West Desert Sevier Lake Is a Remote and Largely Undisturbed Area, Devoid of Light or Noise Pollution August […]

Read More
CategoriesBlog

SUWA Statement on the Council on Environmental Quality’s 2023 Revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) – 7.31.23

Jul 31st, 2023 Written by suwa

SUWA Statement on the Council on Environmental Quality’s 2023 Revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) – 7.31.23 July 31, 2023FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Steve Bloch, Legal Director, Southern Utah […]

Read More
CategoriesRedrock Report

July 2023 Redrock Report

Jul 21st, 2023 Written by suwa

Our e-newsletter with the latest on redrock wilderness news and events.

Read More
12345...102030...

Follow Us on Instagram

@protectwildutah
Follow
BIG news: the BLM has released a plan that finally BIG news: the BLM has released a plan that finally protects Labyrinth Canyon and surrounding public lands! 🎉🎉

Today, the agency released a final motorized vehicle travel management plan for the world-renowned Labyrinth Canyon and Gemini Bridges area near Moab in Grand County, Utah. The new plan will guide land management decisions in this 300,000-acre landscape for years to come. It will help protect cultural sites, riparian habitat, and the experience of non-motorized recreationists while allowing for motorized recreation on more than 800 miles of dirt trails and routes.

“Visitors will finally be able to experience stunning Labyrinth Canyon without the noise, dust, and damage that accompanies motorized recreation,” said Laura Peterson, staff attorney with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA). “For too long, the BLM has prioritized off-road vehicle use at the expense of Utah’s incredible natural and cultural resources. The Labyrinth Canyon plan represents an important step forward to guide the management of Utah’s public lands and reduce the impacts of off-road vehicle routes in this area.”

See link in bio to read our full press release.

📷 James W. Kay

#ProtectWildUtah #LabyrinthCanyon #AccessNotExcess #PublicLands
40th Anniversary #tbt Flashback! It's no secret th 40th Anniversary #tbt Flashback! It's no secret that the eight long years of the George W. Bush administration were especially dark times for America's public lands. With "Drill, baby, drill" the prevailing mantra of the day, the frenzy of pro-industry, anti-conservation decisions continued to the bitter end of Bush's last term.

In late 2008, the BLM released updated resource management plans (RMPs) for 11 million acres of public land in Utah; to no one's great surprise, they opened 80 percent of those lands to oil and gas development. With that license to pillage now granted, the Bush administration announced a year-end fire sale of oil and gas leases as a parting gift to the fossil fuel industry. On the auction block were wilderness-quality lands in Desolation Canyon, the White River, and the greater Nine Mile Canyon and Dinosaur regions. Even parcels near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks were fair game. The sale was so egregious it made national headlines.

Our organizers immediately planned a protest outside the December lease auction, where bundled-up activists held signs reading, "Don't drill away the future" and "Save wilderness." Meanwhile, SUWA and a coalition of six other conservation and historic preservation groups filed a lawsuit against the BLM and quickly won a temporary restraining order. 

A few months later, in a fortunate twist, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar directed the BLM to reject all bids for the 77 lease parcels at issue in our case. In a February 4th editorial, the Salt Lake Tribune noted that "[T]he significance of Salazar's decision hinges on whether it proves, as it should, to be the opening salvo in a determined battle to restore balance to the federal government's management of public land in Utah and elsewhere." 

That battle for balance continues to this day, not only on the fossil fuel leasing front, but also in the quest to secure sound management plans that protect our last wild places.

We've come a long way together -- thanks for being part of the Utah wilderness movement!
Have you ever thought about the evolution of off-r Have you ever thought about the evolution of off-road vehicles (ORVs) and their impact on fragile desert ecosystems? Advancements in ORV technology have far outpaced land management strategies, allowing motorized recreationists to go farther and faster for longer—leaving public lands in Utah vulnerable to significant damage.⁠
⁠
Through field research and active participation in the Bureau of Land Management's ongoing travel planning process, SUWA is working to balance recreational ORV use with the critical need to protect southern Utah’s redrock wilderness.

Swipe to learn more about the history and evolution of ORVs, then text UTAH TRAVEL to 52886 to stay informed on how you can advocate for balanced management of Utah's public lands.

#ProtectWildUtah #AccessNotExcess
40th Anniversary #tbt Flashback! After a bumpy fou 40th Anniversary #tbt Flashback! After a bumpy four-year ride through Congress, the Cedar Mountain Wilderness bill was into law by President George W. Bush in January of 2006. It was the first Utah-specific federal wilderness designation in 22 years and quadrupled the amount of designated Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wilderness in Utah from 25,120 acres to 100,000 acres. 

Representative Rob Bishop (R-UT) introduced the bill in the House as a component of his Utah Test and Training Range Act, which was itself folded into the larger National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). For Bishop—no great friend of wilderness—protecting the Cedars was a useful means of addressing the military’s concerns while at the same time blocking a controversial nuclear waste transportation route. But even with the support of the entire Utah delegation, the bill’s passage was far from guaranteed. Many members of the Senate opposed the legislation precisely because of its anti-nuclear waste implications.

The Senate version of the NDAA omitted Bishop’s Cedar Mountain legislation, leading to a nerve-racking process to reconcile differences between the House and Senate bills. Proponents, including key SUWA activists in Virginia, Michigan, and Nevada, immediately mobilized. Their efforts paid off and the Cedar Mountain Wilderness bill ultimately became law, demonstrating that even in tough political times we can make progress on wilderness designation.

The Cedar range may lack the fame of Utah’s redrock country, but its grassy slopes and rugged limestone outcrops provide important wildlife habitat and offer an accessible oasis of solitude for northern Utah’s urban communities. Wilderness designation has kept the Cedar range a lovely and serene place, free from the encroachment of off-road vehicles and industrial development. 

This conservation victory was made possible by 20-plus years of hard work by SUWA activists around the country who made sure their members of Congress supported the protection of Utah wild lands.

We've come a long way together—thanks for being part of the Utah wilderness movement!

📷 1: © Ray Bloxham/SUWA
📷 2: © SUWA
In an effort to address the explosive growth in hu In an effort to address the explosive growth in human-powered recreation on public lands, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently released its "Blueprint for 21st Century Outdoor Recreation." While not a formal management plan, the Blueprint is a strategic document intended to guide the agency's recreation management across the 245 million acres of public land it manages. It’s crucial for Utah’s wild lands—and for those of us who love them—that they get it right.

Unfortunately, the Blueprint is not the “major shift” that the agency claims will enable it to move from reactive recreation management to a proactive approach that better protects natural and cultural resources. Instead, it offers little change from previous strategic plans that have led to the current, untenable situation. With its overall emphasis on meeting demand and increasing access, the Blueprint is largely devoid of measures that prioritize the protection of natural and cultural resources and ensure timely and meaningful implementation on the ground.

While we support the Blueprint’s focus on growing and diversifying funding, improving equitable access, and ensuring that underserved communities and Tribal voices are represented, we have grave concerns that this well-intended document will do little to halt the degradation of wild lands, wildlife, and cultural landscapes.

The BLM is accepting public comments on the Blueprint through Saturday, September 30th. Please tell the agency that its recreation management strategy must proactively protect intact wild lands, wildlife, and other natural and cultural resources. Action link in bio!

#ReimagineRecreation #ProtectWildUtah

📷 Lin Alder
  • About SUWA
  • Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • Shop
Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Find us on Instagram Watch us on YouTube Watch us on TikTok

Stay Informed About Utah Wilderness

Main Office

425 East 100 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
(801) 486-3161

Washington, DC

122 C Street, NW Suite 650
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 546-2215

Moab

P.O. Box 968
Moab, UT 84532

Yard Sign Request

Click here to submit your information and we’ll deliver a yard sign to the address you provide. It’s that easy!

*Sorry, but we are only able to deliver signs to Utah’s Salt Lake, Davis, Utah, Cache, Weber, Wasatch, Summit, Washington, Iron, and Grand Counties.

  • Privacy Policy

©2023 Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. All Rights Reserved. Protecting Utah’s Redrock Country.