Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.) said Montanans have serious misgivings
about President Obama designating national monuments in the Treasure
State, according to a letter he sent to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell.
The letter, obtained by E&E Daily
under the Freedom of Information Act, says Montanans are "worried"
about Obama's use of the Antiquities Act without the consultation and
consent of local citizens. "I have heard from many Montanans who have raised serious concerns
regarding land protections that may be recommended by the Department of
Interior," Walsh said in his March 13 letter. "I strongly urge you not
to consider the designation of any new monuments in Montana unless there
is significant discussion, collaboration, and support of local
citizens." The letter, which was not publicized, suggests the 1906 Antiquities
Act remains a volatile political issue in Montana, where Walsh, who was
appointed in February by Gov. Steve Bullock (D) to replace former Sen.
Max Baucus (D), is locked in what is expected to be a tight election
race with Rep. Steve Daines (R-Mont.). Walsh has said little about the Antiquities Act during his short
time in office, and it's unclear whether the issue will figure
prominently in the race. Controversy over national monuments flared up in Montana in 2010 with the release of a confidential Interior Department memo
suggesting that the administration was contemplating a potential
2.5-million-acre monument along the Canadian border to protect prairies
and potentially establish a new bison range. The memo put Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), an Obama ally, in an
uncomfortable position in a state where many distrust federal regulatory
intrusions. Bob Abbey, who was director of the Bureau of Land
Management at the time, traveled to Malta, Mont., to tamp down local
concerns, and then-Interior Secretary Ken Salazar wrote a letter to
Tester to assuage his concerns. Walsh is cognizant of that memo too. "A leaked memorandum referenced a potential designation and our
communities were rightfully outraged by the lack of outreach or
consent," Walsh wrote. Jewell responded May 1, saying the department has "no plans to
recommend federal lands in Montana be designated as a national monument,
and I will not recommend a proposal without the support of local
citizens." "I recognize and respect the importance of public and congressional
input when considering appropriate protections for our natural,
historical and cultural treasures," she said. While conservation groups are nudging Obama to declare
landscape-scale national monuments in red states including Arizona, Utah
and Idaho, there do not appear to be any concerted campaigns in
Montana. The state has historically leaned red, but its senators,
governor and at least three of its major statewide elected officials are
Democrats...more
Jewell, "I will not recommend a proposal without the support of local
citizens."
Look out Montana.
She wrote that on May 1 and then 20 days later did exactly the opposite. On May 21 Obama designated the 500,000 acre Organ Mtns.-Desert Peaks National Monument in spite of it being opposed by the Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce, the Hispano Chamber of Commerce, the County Sheriff, the local soil & water conservation district and many others. Jewell needs to change her quote to "local politicians" instead of citizens.
Besides, it probably doesn't matter what Jewell recommends, as its clear to me that John Podesta in the White House is calling the shots on monuments. Senator Walsh wrote to the wrong person in the Obama administration.
Issues of concern to people who live in the west: property rights, water rights, endangered species, livestock grazing, energy production, wilderness and western agriculture. Plus a few items on western history, western literature and the sport of rodeo... Frank DuBois served as the NM Secretary of Agriculture from 1988 to 2003. DuBois is a former legislative assistant to a U.S. Senator, a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Interior, and is the founder of the DuBois Rodeo Scholarship.
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