Trump vs National Parks

[yuiyoshida]

[klook]

1. Zinke's plan for shrinking national monuments belongs in the recycling bin

- LA Times

"...given what we know, it seems likely that Zinke’s process has had less to do with the kind of contemplative weighing of interests that led to the monuments’ creation in the first place than with appeasing conservative politicians and private industries who want the federal government to turn over land to the states so that they can open it to mining and other exploitative uses. Among other things, opening more federal land to oil and gas drilling and coal mining dovetails with President Trump’s ill-advised ambition of vastly increasing production of climate-changing fossil fuels."

"Zinke’s two-page report summary, which the administration did release Thursday, makes it clear that his recommendations are based on second-guessing the decisions of prior administrations that he accuses of overstepping their authority to set aside land for special protections. “Adherence to the Act’s definition of an ‘object’ and ‘smallest area compatible’ clause on some monuments were either arbitrary or likely politically motivated or boundaries could not be supported by science or reasons of practical resource management.” The reference to “science” seems almost laughable from an administration that doesn’t even acknowledge the connection between human activity and global warming.

What should happen now is that the president should make Zinke’s report public, and then, assuming it cuts back protections for important, sensitive, majestic, historic, one-of-a-kind areas of vast open space, throw it in the recycling bin."

In other words, more of the Koch Bros. agenda.


Bears Ears National Monument

More: http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-national-monuments-pictures-20170426-htmlstory.html