Washington, DC — In response to Interior Secretary Zinke’s initial recommendations to President Trump regarding the Bears Ears National Monument, the League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski issued the following statement:

“It’s outrageous that Secretary Zinke is recommending that President Trump eliminate protections for one of America’s most majestic public lands. A president is supposed to safeguard our parks and natural and cultural heritage, not sell them out to the oil and gas industry. More than 1 million public comments have been submitted in favor of preserving national monuments like Bears Ears, which honors local indigenous communities by protecting their ancestral lands and sacred cultural sites for generations to come. This treasure is also a breathtaking landscape for hikers, mountain climbers and others that fuel America’s outdoor recreation economy. It and other national parks and monuments remain highly at risk by Secretary Zinke’s unprecedented review that could result in illegal executive action by President Trump or rollbacks by Congress to abolish or diminish a national monument.  That is why LCV is announcing a bold new campaign on Wednesday to further engage the public and pressure lawmakers to support our national parks and monuments and defend the Antiquities Act from these attacks on our nation’s public lands.”

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