New Mexico's newest monuments under threat by Trump's executive order

[TexasTowelie]

The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, near Las Cruces, will come under review as part of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump. (Lisa Mandelkern/Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument)

WASHINGTON – The status of two national monuments in New Mexico and dozens more nationwide came into question Wednesday after President Donald Trump said his administration would review them to determine whether the protected status is in the best interest of their surrounding communities.

Trump made the announcement at the U.S. Department of Interior moments before he signed an executive order directing Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to scrutinize some national monuments designated under the Antiquities Act, which is more than 100 years-old. Trump said that in some cases the monuments, which are protected from development, amount to a “massive land grab” by the federal government.

“The Antiquities Act does not give the federal government unlimited power to lock up millions of acres of land and water, and it’s time we end this abusive practice,” Trump said at the signing ceremony, adding that he hoped to curb an “egregious abuse of federal power.”

The president’s order for a review applies to monuments created after 1996 that are over 100,000 acres. That includes the Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks national monuments in New Mexico, as well as the newly created Bears Ears National Monument in Southeastern Utah. The Rio Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains monuments were set aside for protection by former President Barack Obama. The order requires Zinke to consult local governments and tribes as part of the review.

Read more: https://www.abqjournal.com/993776/trump-vows-national-monuments-review-nm-delegation-divided.html

[Rhiannon12866]

1. Obviously, nothing is sacred to the Tangerine Tyrant...