National Monuments Case Moves Forward as Court Rules Against Trump

The Procession Panel in Bears Ears National Monument is at least 1,000 years old. Washington, D.C. — Yesterday evening, the coalition fighting to protect Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments cleared a milestone in the legal battle for the future of these public lands when the court deniedthe Trump administration’s motion to dismiss the case. While the legal fight has played out, the Trump administration has rushed through new management plans for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase to open up hundreds of thousands of acres to mining, obliterating forests by dragging anchor chains through them, and new fossil fuel development. The following statement is from Heidi McIntosh, managing attorney of Earthjustice’s Rocky Mountains Office: “We’re pleased the court denied the Trump administration’s motion to dismiss and look forward to the next step: showing that President Trump violated the law when he dismantled Bears Ears and Grand Staircase. When Trump went after our national monuments, he thought he could ride roughshod over this country’s cultural and natural heritage, and auction off iconic public lands that belong to all of us. But this remains a country of laws. We will work relentlessly until we ensure that Bears Ears and Grand […]

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