The Central Wasatch has never been under as much land-use pressure as it is today. The ski industry hungers for expansion and the implementation of the One Wasatch Interconnect. Conservation groups oppose all new development and seek additional protection for the mountain range’s dwindling backcountry. With wilderness proposals and Ski Link all but dead, it seems there is a temporary stalemate. But Save Our Canyons has a novel idea: to turn the Central Wasatch into a National Monument.
National Monuments are a federal designation that can only be passed by Congress or Presidential proclamation under the 1906 Antiquities Act. In an attempt to make this idea happen, Save Our Canyons has issued a proposal and petition to create the Wasatch National Monument, which would stretch from Parley’s Canyon in the north, to Provo Canyon in the south, within the U.S. Forest Service Borders on the east and west. According to SOC, all current land within the monument would essentially be unaffected – private land would still be private, wilderness would still have wilderness protection, etc. They claim monument status would simply provide another level of federal protection against new development.
Most important, in my opinion, is that recreation in the Wasatch would be unchanged. National Monuments allow all forms of recreation, unlike wilderness designation, so no worries about the end of mountain biking or off-roading within a monument.
Below is a map of the proposed boundaries of Wasatch National Monument.
Personally, I don’t think this proposal stands a chance of seeing the light of day in Congress, but it would be fascinating to watch the fallout if President Obama declared the Wasatch a National Monument in the final weeks of his presidency, much like Clinton did with the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument at the end of his term. Can you imagine the outrage of Utah’s Republican leaders if such a thing occurred?
What is also interesting is Save Our Canyons seems to be trying to go over the heads of local law makers, just like proponents of Ski Link tried to engineer a land swap to build a gondola from Canyons to Solitude through a federal congressional bill. It seems both environmentalists and developers are using different edges of the same sword.
For more information and to read the proposal from Save Our Canyons, head over to their website.
So what do you think about this idea? Would a National Monument designation be a good thing for the Wasatch?