A Win for National Parks & Monuments

UPHE is excited to see a win for our National Parks & Monuments! The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has canceled the proposed sale of oil and gas leases near our National Parks and Monuments! The sale would have consisted of oil and gas leases on 87,000 acres near Arches, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Bears Ears.

The surprise move will avoid what many critics said would be a replay of the BLM’s 2008 leasing debacle when the outgoing administration of George W. Bush attempted to lease vast swaths of redrock terrain in the same area, only to see the auction monkey-wrenched by a climate activist’s phony bids. That sale was later invalidated because it had not been properly reviewed and led to leasing reforms that the Trump administration has largely scuttled in its zeal to maximize energy development on public lands.

Read full Salt Lake Tribune article here.