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“It may be the easiest thing I’ve ever done as president, so far,” Biden said before making the announcement.
Bear Ears National Monument will be restored to 1.36 million acres and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument will be restored to 1.87 million acres, according to the backgrounder. In addition, the monument’s protections of the northeast canyons and seamounts off the coast of New England, as established under then-President Barack Obama, will be restored.
“I am grateful to the leaders of the tribal nations, both those who are here with us today and those who cannot join us. Today, I am proud to announce the protection and expansion. of three of the most precious national monuments, our most precious, based on the powers given to the President over the Antiquities Act first used over a century ago by Teddy Roosevelt, ”Biden said.
“The truth is that monuments and national parks are part of the identity, of our identity as a people,” added the president. “They are more than natural wonders, they are the birthright that we have passed down from generation to generation, a birthright of every American. Preserving them is the fulfillment of a promise made to our children.”
Biden said his decision to protect national monuments was also tied to his administration’s climate agenda.
“We are not only saving birds and fish and the livelihoods of the people who depend on them, we are also strengthening natural defenses to absorb the fury of hurricanes and super storms,” Biden said. “Almost one in three Americans live in a community that has been hit by weather disasters in the past few months alone – hurricanes, wildfires, droughts, heat waves – the Build Back Better plan and my bipartisan bill on infrastructure make critical investments, dramatically increasing the resilience of these devastating effects on the climate crisis. ”
The move marks a reversal of the Trump administration’s policy of cutting the Bears Ears monument, which Obama created, and the Grand Staircase-Escalante monument, which then President Bill Clinton designated, by 85%. about 45%.
The two former Democratic presidents have designated Utah monuments for protection in hopes of preserving their culture, history and natural beauty. When announcing his policy in 2017, Trump criticized what he called a “federal overshoot” and said previous administrations believed “Utah’s natural resources should be controlled by a small handful of Very distant bureaucrats located in Washington. And guess what? They’re wrong. “
Utah Republican Gov. Spencer Cox said in a critical statement Thursday that he was briefed on the decision to expand the size of the monuments by Home Secretary Deb Haaland.
“The president’s decision to expand monuments again is a tragically missed opportunity – it does not provide the certainty or funding for the law enforcement, research and other protections that monuments need and that alone congressional action can deliver, ”Cox said.
Republican Senator Mitt Romney of Utah also criticized the move, saying Thursday on Twitter that his state’s national monuments were being used as “political football.”
“The decision to re-extend the boundaries of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante is a devastating blow to our state, local and tribal leaders and our delegation,” Romney said. “The president wasted the opportunity to reach consensus by working with stakeholders to find a permanent legislative solution to resolve the long-standing dispute over the boundaries and management of monuments, which would have brought certainty and benefited all stakeholders. “
CNN’s Shawna Mizelle and Andy Rose contributed to this report.
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