PUBLIC LANDS

The Fate of Our National Monuments Is In Your Hands: DOI Opens Up to Public Comment

Berryessa Snow Mountain in California, a national monument established in 2015, is on an administrative short list for public review.  Getty Images

On Friday the Department of Interior formally released their list of national monuments that are “under review,” following President Trump’s executive order. The list includes many of the monuments that we expected to be there, like the oil- and gas-rich land around Grand Staircase-Escalante, as well as many others, including the Carrizo Plain in California, Gold Butte in Nevada, and Ironwood Forest in Arizona. All in all, 267 national monuments are up for review. The full list includes: 

  1. Basin and Range, Nevada, established in 2015
  2. Bears Ears, Utah, established in 2016
  3. Berryessa Snow Mountain, California, established in 2015
  4. Canyons of the Ancients, Colorado, established in 2000
  5. Carrizo Plain, California, established in 2001
  6. Craters of the Moon, Idaho, established in 2000
  7. Giant Sequoia, California, established in 2000
  8. Gold Butte, Nevada, established in 2016
  9. Grand Canyon-Parashant, Arizona, established in 2000
  10. Grand Staircase-Escalante, Utah, established in 1996
  11. Hanford Reach, Washington, established in 2000
  12. Ironwood Forest, Arizona, established in 2000
  13. Mojave Trails, California, established in 2016
  14. Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks, New Mexico, established in 2014
  15. Rio Grande del Norte, New Mexico, established in 2013
  16. Sand to Snow, California, established in 2016
  17. San Gabriel Mountains, California, established n 2014
  18. Sonoran Desert, Arizona, established in 2001
  19. Upper Missouri River Breaks, Montana, established in 2001
  20. Vermilion Cliffs, Arizona, established in 2000
  21. Katahadin Woods and Waters, Maine, established in 2014
  22. Marianas Trench, Pacific Ocean, established in 2009
  23. Northeast Canyons and Seamounts, Atlantic Ocean, established in 2016
  24. Pacific Remote Islands, Pacific Ocean, established in 2009
  25. Papahanaumokuakea, Hawaii and the Pacific Ocean, established in 2006 and 2016
  26. Rose Atoll, Pacific Ocean, established in 2009

“These are places where Presidents had the foresight to protect stunning landscapes that help define us a nation,” says Kate Kelly, Public Lands Director at Center for American Progress. “Not only are they the kind of beautiful that will take your breath away, but they honor our country’s rich cultural and outdoor heritage.

The DOI is currently asking for public input into our national monuments. Starting on Friday, May 12, go to regulations.gov and search “DOI-2017-0002” in the search bar, and let them know what you think. You can also mail your input to:

Monument Review, MS-1530U.S. / Department of the Interior / 1849 C Street NW / Washington, DC 20240

Comments pertaining to Bears Ears must be submitted within 15 days (an indication that the administration may be targeting the Utah monument first). Comments pertaining to other designations must be submitted within 60 days.

“If the review comes back with recommendations to eliminate or shrink any national monuments,” says Kelly, “the Trump Administration will be fighting a losing battle in court — and the court of public opinion.”