~~ Bear Essentials ~ May 29, 2017 ~~

A Big Thank You to all who wrote letters as part of the DOI 14-day review.  Your thoughtful, fact-filled responses will hopefully carry more weight than the thousands of form letters from people who have never been to Bears Ears territory.  On June 10 Secretary Zinke is supposed to have recommendations ready for the President regarding National Monuments designated the past 21 years. Pray daily.

“A rich man’s playground should never come at the expense

of a working man’s livelihood” (and dream).  Senator Mike Lee

                            "Promoting tourism as landscape preservation is a complete farce."  Chris Baird 5/18/17

                   View:  A great collection of last year’s Bears Ears videos

                                                              

Good News Bears

n  Balanced Resources Group urges that Bears Ears be Rescinded  Their FB site contains lots of maps and additional resources.

n  Bears Ears Review garners 57,000 comments Las Vegas Review  KSL’s story on Review Comments

n  Heated Debate Over National Monuments: A good overview from Shake, Rattle, and Troll showing the impact on the U.S.  Includes this info on Utah specifically.  Great information.

n  San Juan County Commissioners forewarn of unintended consequences caused by monuments  SL Tribune; (subsequent comments belong in the Bad News Bears Section!)  Tribune commentators all need a “Be Nice” T-shirt!

n  Monument would do more harm than good, by Suzette Morris

n  Rescind Bears Ears National Monument by Ryan Benally

n  Four Corners Free Press-- a pretty balanced article about BENM

n  Ranchers Urge Zinke to Scale back Organ Mountain NM Designation

n  Rob Bishop aims to ensure federal, local land-use consultation

n  Oversight committee video discussing sue and settle problems

n  Rob Bishop Introduced Lawful Purposes/Self Defense Act

n  Plaintiff in Suit Against Chicken Farmer Fails to Cough up Evidence

n  Idaho Judge limits Tribe’s Water Rights to their Reservation

                                                                                           

Bad News Bears

n  Thousands of Form letters sent in during Antiquities Act Review

n  Suspicious Fire in remote area of Bears Ears Includes graphs related to BLM staffing

n  More Environmental Hysteria & Green Baloney: by John Stossel

n  More accusations Against Agent Dan Love

n  Trump Must Stop Prosecution of Property Owners

n  Forest Fires and lack of Management in Yellowstone

n  The Debate over National Monuments /Video

n  Kayenta Citizens oppose D. Filfred’s gun bill

~~~~~~~

 Should Animal Opinions Count Too!  

 

~~~~~~~~~~     

                       

Worth Watching: The Bundy Story and the Patriot Movement by PBS

Follow Stewards of San Juan

~~~~~

http://beyondthebears.blogspot.com/

Documenting Bears Ears No Monument efforts since July 2016

Bear Essentials ~~May 25, 2017~~

Q: Who manages lands more effectively, the federal government or Western states?

A: “Federal multiple-use lands have enormous potential to generate revenues for the public good. Yet the BLM and U.S. Forest Service lose taxpayers an average of nearly $2 billion per year. In comparison, states are controlling costs and generating substantial revenues from state trust lands. From 2009 to 2013, Montana, Idaho, New Mexico and Arizona earned a combined average of $14.51 for every dollar spent managing state trust lands. During that same period federal land agencies lost money, generating only 73 cents for each dollar spent. High costs and inefficiencies have contributed to the deferred maintenance backlog of almost $18 billion for the three largest federal land management agencies combined. This threatens the environment and very resources these federal agencies were created to protect.”  Sutherland Institute, who we support!

If you haven’t written so do immediately.  DOI Reviewends today! May 25

Use the quote above, if nothing else.

This Link takes you directly to the Review Comments page

                   Knowledge is Power, but Silence is Consent      
  

Thank you, everyone who wrote during this two week review period for the Antiquities Act.  That was one thing everyone could do, and Stewards of San Juan appreciates it. Continue to let your voice be heard. (Grumbling to your neighbors, doesn't count!)
n  A great collection of last year’s Bears Ears videos compiled by Sutherlands. 

n  Ironic twist of events: Conservationist Purchases Needles SILTA Land

n  Videos of Sec. Zinke’s visit

n  Shake, Rattle, and Troll: Tangled Web of Environmentalist Groups--Redo Article:  

                                                              

Good News Bears

n  Navajo Times: Rescind Bears Ears monument immediately by R. Benally, Second Letter down

n  Monument size a Concern as Feds Review Status Farmington Daily Times

n  Monument Status Likely to Damage Bears Ears by Jim Stiles

n  Natural Resource Laws Gone Astray  Panel focuses on three laws in particular: the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA), the Wilderness Act and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA). 

n  Balanced Resources A Facebook group with similar concerns: Gem State Patriots reprints Earlier NGO Article

n  Gem State Patriots reprints Earlier NGO Article

n  Thinning Forests (i.e. logging?) Initiated by Conservation Group?!

Map showing the distribution of Federal land in Utah: BLM, US Forest Service, reservations, Dept. of Reclamation, Wilderness, Defense, etc. Only 21% of Utah is private land, and in San Juan only 8% is private.  Yes, it’s time for a change!

  

  Bad News Bears

n  SITLA Hoping to Create a Win-Win Situation for Schools and Hunters  SL Tribune
n  Antiquities Review Endangers American Stories Can you tell they’re running scared?
n  Navajo Nation Services Lack Basics Like Running Water
n  Animal Rights or Chicken Feathers? Law Suit Against Chicken Farm in Colorado
n  Access for Dogs, top priority for National Conservation Lands?  Who cares about people!

Follow Stewards of San Juan

~~~~~

http://beyondthebears.blogspot.com/

Documenting Bears Ears No Monument efforts since July 2016

Former Kane County Commissioner Responds to DOI Review

Retired Kane Commissioner, Mark Habbeshaw, mounts up for rally on land use August 2011.
Salt Lake Tribune Article

Re: Bears Ears National Monument Antiquities Act Review by DOI

Dear Sir:

As a previous County Commissioner in Kane County Utah having to deal with issues and problems related to the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM) for a period of ten years (2001-2010) I commend the DOI for its review of monument designations, including the GSENM and the Bears Ears National Monument (BENM), both within the state of Utah. The extensive problems I had with the GSENM will become equally problematic with the BENM if it is allowed to remain a monument.

The Antiquities Act’s original congressional intent has been abused in many instances for political purposes, in part for payback for financial and political support of environmental organizations. The primary abuse of the Antiquities Act relates to congressional intent that the size of monuments shall be limited to the “smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects to be protected.” Congressional use of the word “objects” does not support monument designations of large and areas at the request of environmental organizations, wealthy foundations and other individuals or groups in order to create defacto wilderness conditions when Congress does not create Wilderness Areas to their satisfaction.

Kane County, Utah 

As a County Commissioner is was necessary to initiate two costly lawsuits against the federal government in order to protect our local interests from monument management abuses. In the County’s federal quiet title lawsuit GSENM management attempted to close approximately 85% of the County’s historic public highways across the monument. This action was taken in spite of the fact that the highways were rights-of- way (ROW) easements granted to the County by the U.S. Congress under Revised Statute 2477 of the Mining Act of 1866. After spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal quiet title litigation the County secured adjudicated ROWs to six of its county roads. These were the first and only fully adjudicated RS2477 ROWs in the nation. 

The county still has over 700 roads in quiet title litigation in continually delayed quiet title litigation. The State of Utah also has an extensive number of roads in quiet title litigation because the BLM and other federal land management agencies refuse to recognize congressionally granted highway ROWs. In the meantime, the status of roads monument management has posted closed or restricted and the County claims are open public highways is uncertain and controversial.

In one instance, monument management closed and barricaded the County’s historic and most iconic backcountry road – the Paria River road. This action was taken at the request of two environmental groups, the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance and The Wilderness Society. The two groups had previously sued the County for managing its roads across the GSENM. Federal Judge Tena Campbell issued a restraining order against the County not to take any action on roads within the GSENM without federal quiet title adjudication. This is when the Paria River road was closed by monument management at the behest of the environmental organizations. Judge Campbell was overturned by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeal but the Paria River road remains barricaded and closed under threat of federal arrest.

In the County’s and local ranchers’ lawsuit to stop grazing elimination on the GSENM, the GSENM attempted to permanently retire (close) several grazing allotments on the GSENM. The grazing closures were attempted even though the GSENM Proclamation allows existing levels of livestock grazing as being consistent with monument purposes. The way it worked was that GSENM staff would bring pressures and restrictions to certain ranchers, making their allotments less viable. Then Bill Hedden of the Grand Canyon Trust (GCT) would buy the allotments. GSENM management then produced several environmental assessments (EAs) taking action to permanently close the allotments to livestock grazing.

Because of the public notification requirements, the County and local ranchers tried to work with monument management to avoid permanent grazing allotment retirements. The effort was unsuccessful resulting in the County and the ranchers filing a lawsuit in federal court. The same federal judge in the RS2477 litigation denied the County standing in the grazing litigation, forcing the local ranchers to bear the costs of litigation. The end result of costly litigation was that the GCT and the GSENM could not permanently retire the grazing allotments and that the GCT could keep the allotments but that it must use them for grazing purposes as required by the Taylor Grazing Act. Today, the GCT holds the grazing allotments but runs them with the minimal stocking rates allowed.

The wealthy foundations that were funding the GCT’s buyouts will no longer provide funding because the allotments cannot be permanently retired. Therefore, Bill Hedden and the GCT are no longer purchasing allotment within the GSENM. However, GSENM management is still trying to formulate a means to permanently retire grazing allotments in the development of recent planning efforts. The designation of the GSENM stopped development of the Andelex Coal Mine in the area of Smokey Hollow within the GSENM. The mine site is capable of producing high quality coal for the nation for the next thirty years. It could be a tremendous economic benefit to southern Utah and northern Arizona. If the DOI Antiquities Act review results in rescinding the GSENM’s monument status or results in a significant reduction in the size of the GSENM it could free up this valuable coal resource for production. It could also free up significant other valuable natural resources within the GSENM for public benefit.

The designation of monuments, most often managed like national parks (NPs), do not support multiple-use of our public lands for economic and traditional uses important to local rural communities. Monuments have most often been designated without proper coordination with local and state officials and the people living on or by those lands. Motorized and mechanized access is always severely restricted when compared to public lands managed for multiple-use under the provisions of the Federal Lands Policy and Management Act (FLPMA). These recreational activities are important to local economies and to local residents for their enjoyment of our public lands.

In 1906, the Antiquities Act was passed with the primary purpose of rapidly acting to prevent the looting of archaeological sites. Congress never envisioned the abuses of the act we are seeing in more recent times. The Antiquities Act is antiquated today. There are abundant laws, rules and regulations to protect our resources to the extent necessary. There is no longer the need for speedy action by a President.

Large land mass designations that restrict the principles of multiple-use under FLPMA should properly be made by a deliberative body; i.e., the U.S. Congress. It would be appropriate in the DOI’s review of monuments deemed inconsistent with the Antiquities Act’s provisions, without consideration of other federal protective means and without proper and adequate consultation with local people, local and state governments to rescind or severely reduce the size of monuments over 100,000 acres. This would allow future congressional action to decide what, if any, restrictions are necessary regarding large land masses.

The West, because of the history of land status relies on multiple-uses of public lands for economic benefit and for a traditional quality of life. Large, unjustified monuments created without congressional approval are a very serious problem in the American West.

Thank you,

Mark Habbeshaw

Kane County Utah County

Commissioner Habbeshaw in the News:

Habbeshaw Given Extra Miler Award 2013

Kane County Wins its first R.S 2477 Fight

Habbeshaw Leads Road Battles in 2005

Review Comment Relative to Uranium Mining

To the alarmists claiming that Bears Ears Monument will be turned into a drilling/ mining mecca if rescinded and turned back to the state: It just isn't so. (See attached map.) Very little oil exists in those areas. Plus you fail to factor in, that Southern Utah citizens love having public land for all the things they've been doing for hundreds of years. Neither Native nor Anglo locals want to give that up. 

However, be aware that during the 50's - 60's San Juan county was blessed with abundance of uranium, and the results of the boom, although some consider it temporary, built two new high schools, new elementary schools, a hospital, and paved roads throughout the county. This was done through the increased tax revenues. It is hard to have a solid tax base without use of private land and our county has only 8% to work with. Give us a break! We still use most of those schools today, and some need replacing. But our tax base is significantly less. What if today's restrictions would have been in place then?

It is time for the Antiquities Act to stop being the play maker in the game of land grabs by environmental groups. All states should be sovereign and have the ability to bless the well being of their citizens. We should not be treated as pawns, by heavy handed NGO's with ulterior motives.    

Bears Ears Warrior Moves to Richfield

There have been many heroes and heroines in this grassroots volunteer effort to protect the Bears Ears from further federal control, but few individuals were as committed and engaged as was Cassy Moon, who opened our eyes to the facts, and jolted us out of our comfortable lethargy.  We will very much miss the Moon family, as they have now moved to Richfield, Utah.  But she promises to keep helping.  Here she is with other freedom fighters: 

L_R:  Eva Clarke Workman, Cassy Moon, Cody Cosby, Nicole Perkins, Wendy Black, and Commissioner Phil Lyman

Here are a few thank yous she received prior to leaving: 

          We Can’t Bear to see you go…but know you’ll keep Growling and Prowling!

~~Cassy is my hero. The first meeting on all this monument stuff I attended, Cassy spoke to the crowd. Urging all of us to get off our comfortable butts and understand we could fight this. That we HAD to fight this. Thank you so much for the collective kick in the pants.     Wendy Black

--Even though I’d know you as a teacher, I’d never seen your fire until at the Mike Noel meeting Phil organized in June 2016 at the arena theater.  I’ll never forget how you jumped up, not just once, but twice to plead with us to take this seriously, to get involved, to understand what we had to lose. Being the basically apolitical person I am, I don’t know if I’d gotten engaged in this battle otherwise.  Thank you for the motivation, insight, and passion you passed on that evening.  You are truly a great warrior-leader, and will be sorely missed in our community.    Janet Wilcox

~~Cassy Moon, from me and grandma Betty. 

We both want to say thank you for all the hard work that you have done with us fearless warriors. We will surely miss Cassy Moon and your family. We wish you the best and give us a call every once in while.  You are a one true friend-- very sensitive, very emotional about our cause. Thank you. We won't be able to make it today, but our prayers our blessing go with you.

Anna Tom and Grandma Betty Jones

Janet, Cassy with her Bears Ears Storyteller memento and Phil Lyman

~~Way back last May/June (not sure exactly when) I attended a meeting that I believe Phil Lyman put together with Mike Noel. Towards the end of the meeting there was a notebook that was passed around for everyone to put their contact info. A few days later I emailed everyone on that list trying to put some sort of group together to unite our efforts to fight the monument. It was very clumsily done and not very inspiring, but Cassy Moon was one of very few people who responded to that email.

A few weeks later I met with Irene Jones, Anna Tom, and Grandma Betty to plan out what we could do about utilizing the 4th of July and throw together a float in a matter of weeks. I sent out emails, texts, etc... and once again it was Cassy Moon who was among the few to respond. She not only responded but she took the bull by the horns and stepped in where ever she saw a need. She was involved up to her eyeballs from the very beginning. She has inspired me through her actions, writing, and willingness to stand up and speak out with passion and diplomacy. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to work along side this warrior woman and will treasure this friendship and the many things I have learned from her over the past year. Good luck and God Bless you, Cassy!

Nicole Perkins

From Reighley Jones and Brydon Hunter: They said,  "We will both miss these kind people in our school; may you be guide by our eagle that flies high in the air; may you be our eyes and ears...for our cause we will continue on forward to getting it done...You both inspired us...

PHD and ATV Enthusiast Supports No Monument Position.

By Rainer Huck,  Ph.D.

I have lived in Utah since 1949 and have been a public lands access-for-all activist since 1987.   I was president of the Utah Trail Machine Association for 10 years and founder and president of the Utah Shared Access Alliance for 7 years.   Since 1990, I have traveled approximately 10,000 miles of back country roads and trails each year, giving me an unmatched   personal insight into just what is at stake due to the special interest land management practices that have devastated public land access for the vast majority of our people.

Access to and use of Utah Public lands has been under attack since the formation of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance in 1985.   This greatly intensified in 1994 with the passage of the California Desert Closure Act which created over 8 million acres of Wilderness in formerly multiple use BLM lands.   This allowed the Sierra Club to focus its effort outside California, specifically Utah, where they pumped up SUWA with millions of 501(c)3 tax free dollars.    With this new found wealth, SUWA was able to squeeze out all competing “environmental” groups and gain dominance in the business of converting multiple use public lands into single use Wilderness.

Because I have been an advocate for motor assisted access to our public lands, I will confine my comments to just this aspect of the current review process. The Bears Ears National Monument is just the latest example of the relentless drive by the political environmentalists to eliminate people who either require or desire to use motor transport for access from the public lands.    

In this enterprise their success has been nothing short of prodigious.    In 1985 over 95% of Utah’s BLM lands were available for travel by motor vehicle.  Now, over 95% is closed to such use.   This has occurred because the political environmentalists (SUWA, Sierra Club, and others) have taken complete control of the land management agencies and the courts.   They are aided in this endeavor by so called main stream media which will always supports their unsubstantiated claims of damage caused by vehicle users as a pretext for closure  and they never acknowledge competing views or offer balanced coverage.  Many of their stories are shameless propaganda.

The political environmentalists acting through the Agencies and the Courts have created endless means of restricting travel on public lands with the primary purpose of preparing these lands for future Wilderness designation. They demand this, the most restrictive of all possible options, because it is irreversible and removes the land from any future discussion or changes in management. Once land is so designated, only an Act of Congress signed by the President can restore multiple use.  Thus, Wilderness designation is analogous to a cosmic black hole:    Whatever enters can never escape.   

Many Utah politicians, including the majority of the Congressional Delegation, have recognized the harm Wilderness will bring to Utah’s economic future and have mostly resisted the demands of the political environmentalists.   As a result, they have resorted to a number of other methods to circumvent the will of the people of Utah to determine the management of their public lands.  The illicit designation of national monuments under the pretext of the Antiquities Act is just one of these.   

SUWA was the driving force behind the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument designated by President Bill Clinton in 1996 to stop the Kaiparowits coal mine which would have provided vast amounts of low Sulphur coal at a low cost and revitalized the economy in Kane County. Because they have failed in their efforts to gain additional Wilderness designations, they have resorted to an end-run around Congress by persuading an agenda driven President Obama to do their work.They like national monuments because they always upgrade to national parks eventually which are almost as good as Wilderness in their eyes.

While the esoteric values of Wilderness and National Monuments reside mostly in the realms of philosophy or religion, one outcome of their designation directly and negatively impacts legally protected populations:  The elderly, the disabled, and the mobility impaired.  In this way, this kind of public land management violates numerous constitutional and statuary protections.

The primary impact of these designations is the elimination or vast reduction of access through motor powered vehicles. This means that all persons who lack the strength, stamina, or health to hike or walk for long distances, often under difficult conditions, are effectively BANNED from these formerly public lands.        

It is interesting to note that under the Americans with Disabilities Act, our government has forced the expenditure of Hundreds of billions of dollars by private property owners to insure access to all persons. Yet, this same government has spent billions of dollars to actively deny access to our most vulnerable populations to public lands.   

The Bears Ears National Monument is just the most recent example of this process of removing the public lands from the public and gifting them to the political environmentalists. There is no “damage” being done to this land (if that where even possible) and no purpose is being served other than the creation of a new and expensive bureaucracy.  

I would ask that you recommend the complete rescission of not only the Bears Ears National Monument, but also the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.   These BLM lands should be managed according to the congressional mandate of Multiple Use and not be set aside as a private playground of the elite environmentalists.    

Many thanks for your consideration,

Dr. Rainer Huck

1680 E. Atkin Ave.

Salt Lake City, Utah  84105

Ph.   801 467 3795