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Secretary Zinke & the White House Set to Review National Monument Designations
On Wednesday the President intends to sign an order for the Interior Department and Secretary Zinke to review all national monument designations made by the past 3 presidents over the past 21 years, which could "upend protections that previous presidents have put in place in Utah and elsewhere across the country."
The 1906 Antiquities Act, championed by President Theodore Roosevelt, authorizes presidents to protect federal lands and waters. However, these designations are often resented among Republican westerners. Designated federal lands become off-limits for development and economic use, and land designated under the Antiquities Act include some of the nation's most beloved natural treasures. The home page of the U.S. Department of the Interior even touts the economic value of National Parks to the economy.
Beyond the economic, environmental, and historical value of designated natural monuments,
[a]ny move by Trump to abolish a national monument designation could spark a serious legal battle. While Congress has wide latitude to change national monument designations, presidents rarely alter ones that are in place...
In 1938, the U.S. attorney general wrote a formal opinion saying the Antiquities Act authorized a president to establish a monument but did not grant a president the right to abolish one.
ACTION: Call Secretary Zinke's office at the Department of the Interior at (202) 208-3100 or fill out the feedback form on their web site to let the Secretary and the agency understand how much you value protecting federal lands, our birthright as Americans.
As President Theodore Roosevelt said: "I recognize the right and duty of this generation to develop and use the natural resources of our land; but I do not recognize the right to waste them, or to rob, by wasteful use, the generations that come after us."