Trump plans to shrink 2 national monuments

WASHINGTON — Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said Friday that President Donald Trump had told him the administration would shrink two national monuments covering millions of acres in the state.

Hatch said Trump told him in a phone conversation that he had approved recommendations drawn up by Ryan Zinke, the Interior secretary, to reduce the size of Bears Ears National Monument, established by former President Barack Obama, and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, designated by former President Bill Clinton.

“I’m approving the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase recommendation for you, Orrin,” the president said, according to a statement by Hatch.

The Bears Ears monument covers 1.35 million acres, and Grand Staircase-Escalante, the largest monument in the United States, spans 1.9 million acres. The scope of the proposed reductions and the new boundaries of the monuments were not immediately clear.

The Interior Department recommendations, which included changes to a handful of other national monuments, stemmed from an executive order Trump signed in April requiring a review of 24 sites across the country.

Earlier Friday, Zinke met with Trump to discuss the recommendations. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House spokeswoman, said a final report would be released “shortly.” She did not confirm whether the president has signed off on it in part or in whole.

A spokeswoman from the Interior Department did not respond to requests for comment.

Environmental groups denounced the decision.

“It is a disgrace that the president wants to undo the nation’s first national monument created to honor Native American cultural heritage. And a travesty that he’s trying to unravel a century’s worth of conservation history, all behind closed doors,” Rhea Suh, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council said, referring to Bears Ears.

National monuments have long been a source of controversy among ranchers, miners and environmentalists. Conservative groups argue that such designations, similar to national parks, create regulatory burdens that hurt local economies. Bears Ears, which Obama created, has been a particular source of friction, as is Grand Staircase-Escalante.

Republicans in Western states have accused both Clinton and Obama of federal overreach in demanding strict protections for those sites.