** Utah, Interior move forward with land exchange to restore Bears Ears
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Tuesday, December 14, 2021
Needles Overlook, Bears Ears National Monument. Photo by Bob Wick, BLM ([link removed])

Work is underway on a land exchange between the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) and the Interior Department ([link removed]) for approximately 135,000 acres of land managed by the state of Utah within the boundaries of the recently restored Bears Ears National Monument.

In October, President Biden signed a proclamation ([link removed]) restoring more than 1.1 million acres excised from the monument by President Trump in 2017. The proclamation directed Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to explore an exchange of state in-holdings "for land of approximately equal value managed by the Bureau of Land Management outside the boundary of the monument." President Biden wrote in the proclamation ([link removed]) , "Consolidation of lands within the monument boundary through exchange in this manner provides for the orderly management of public lands and is in the public interest."

The Interior Department is working with the state of Utah to facilitate the exchange despite a looming threat of a lawsuit from the governor and the state attorney general challenging Biden's decision to restore the monument to its original size. However, even if Utah's state officials pursue a frivolous and expensive lawsuit using taxpayer money ([link removed]) , it won't necessarily halt work on a land exchange, a process that can take years to complete. Marla Kennedy, SITLA's communications director said in a statement to E&E News ([link removed]) , "SITLA has a long and successful history of exchanging complex and difficult to monetize trust lands for lands with more significant potential to generate revenue for its trust beneficiaries. These exchanges largely benefit public schools and other beneficiaries and contribute to
economic development in communities across the state."
Quick hits


** Utah may be overusing its Colorado River allotment
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Deseret News ([link removed])


** Opinion: The value of a "Greater Chaco" national park
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History News Network ([link removed])


** Amid ongoing drought, one Arizona tribe seeks to lease water, another to conserve more
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Arizona Republic ([link removed])


** After surviving wildfire, visitors can once again see 2,000-year old General Sherman giant sequoia tree
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Travel + Leisure ([link removed]) | Associated Press ([link removed])


** Opinion: Congress must protect Colorado's public lands in Build Back Better legislation
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Colorado Newsline ([link removed])


** Utah, Interior move forward with land exchange to restore Bears Ears
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E&E News ([link removed])


** Advocates call on Biden to nominate permanent head of mine reclamation agency
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The Hill ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])


** Arches National Park will require reservations starting in 2022
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Lonely Planet ([link removed]) | Associated Press ([link removed])
Quote of the day
Updating the federal royalty rate to 18.75% would have a negligible impact on production levels and consumer energy prices, and it could raise up to $2.1 billion per year ([link removed]) in additional revenue that could help individuals and communities by investing in schools, infrastructure and health care."
—Pegah Jalali, Colorado Fiscal Institute; Colorado Newsline ([link removed])
Picture this


** @USFWSRefuges ([link removed])
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Two sandhill cranes fly in tandem across a field at New Mexico’s Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge [link removed] ([link removed]) Photo: Dennis Dusenberry/@USFWS ([link removed])

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