Bruce Adams spoke in support of the HCR 011 resolution and shared his experience with the designation of the monument. Summary: SJ County made an effort to hear from local people, questionnaires were sent out, county web site comments. The majority of the county did not want a monument. This did not mean we did NOT want to protect artifacts! There are already laws and enough layers of protection in our county to protect these artifacts. This monument is "overkill." There are enough laws and protections already afforded. We relied on information from Garfield county about GSENM and how it has negatively impacted their communities and county. We do not want the same thing to happen in our county.
Commissioner Rebecca Benally was in Washington DC. Commissioner Adams explained her involvement in the Bears Ears Monument protest: Benally spoke with her Native American constituency; some of whom support the monument and some do not support Bears Ears NM. However, the majority of those who live in San Juan oppose the monument. "People who live in the poorest county of Utah are feeling threatened with their livelihood. They are not rich people. But they love the land and the lifestyle in San Juan. They love clean air, and getting out in nature. We don't think it was vetted sufficiently. Those with grazing and water rights were not consulted. LIsten to the local people, and local elected officials."
Leland Pollack, Garfield Commissioner also spoke: He mentioned that In 1996 there were140 school children in Escalante, in 2016 numbers were down to 51 children. A state of emergency was declared in education. "If you drop that much, what's happening to the economy?" It was also stated that the Kaparowitz plateau is "no scenic benefit to a monument, but it contains 65% of coal reserves in Utah. . . . It helps to pay for schools, services. We can't afford to lock it up."
Listen to the full presentation to hear all the opposing concerns, and responses.
Differences in PLI was discussed: It contained recreational areas, guaranteed road use, didn't leave SITLA lands tied up like a monument does. Contained a different management plan with more local input. Audience members were also allowed to speak, and this was limited to 75 seconds each, and alternated between pro and con.
Ty Markham was the first speaker speaking against the resolution. She ran for the State Senate last fall. She said the coalition represented "thousands of Native Americans" in the county and they would be co-managers. A Uintah county commissioner spoke in favor of the resolution. Matt Anderson from Sutherland Institute, spoke of his interaction with San Juan County, emphasizing that they do not want a National Monument.
Others emphasized that promises made with GSENM were not kept regarding grazing rights and wood gathering. Cynthia Wilson from Monument Valley spoke against the resolution saying, that the Monument "honors our culture, hear voices from south of the county." Tooele County commissioner also spoke about the process the government goes through, saying that "those living closest to the area are the best to govern it." A mountain climber spoke against the resolution, representing American Alpine Club.
Video/Audio presentations of HCR 011 Hearing:
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