Zinke report recommends shrinking monument size, giving tribes co-management of Bears Ears

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has issued a preliminary recommendation to shrink the boundary of the 1.35-million-acre Bears Ears National Monument, which was established in December by former President Barack Obama. In a June 12 memorandum to President Donald Trump, Zinke said that under the Antiquities Act, the monument should be the “smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects [of cultural significance].”

“It would have been more appropriate to protect only specific areas of cultural and historic importance within the current Bears Ears boundary,” … Continue reading Zinke report recommends shrinking monument size, giving tribes co-management of Bears Ears

Twenty arrested at June 19 protest at PR Spring mine

Twenty environmental activists were arrested in the East Tavaputs Plateau of the Book Cliffs after trespassing onto the U.S. Oil Sands PR Spring mine site on June 19 to protest the mining of tar sands in Utah. Acting on a plan to restore lands they contend was destroyed by the construction of the PR Spring mine, the protestors planted native seeds at an open pit during the final demonstration at the three-day “mine reclamation action.” Continue reading Twenty arrested at June 19 protest at PR Spring mine

Lin Ottinger’s 1964 Canyonlands Tour Bus restored after decades in storage

May 26, 2016 – “Lin Ottinger’s Land Tours” is painted across the red Volkswagen bus in bold white lettering. The vehicle looks about the same as it did in past decades when it ferried tourists around the Canyonlands, Arches and Monument Valley regions, but on the inside it is a new machine. Now, after 25 years in storage, the bus is back on the road… Continue reading Lin Ottinger’s 1964 Canyonlands Tour Bus restored after decades in storage