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Utah Recreational Land Exchange Act
For five years Grand Canyon Trust has worked diligently to advance the Utah Recreational Land Exchange Act in the U.S. Congress. The intent of the bill is to consolidate the federal estate in the spectacular canyonlands of southeast Utah trading 48,000 acres of state land inholdings to the BLM and out of places that are better suited for conservation purposes. At stake are critical watersheds and wildlife habitat, valuable scenic and recreation lands and lands in Wilderness Study Areas. State land sections are scattered randomly across federal lands comprising 70 % of the state. The Utah Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) is mandated to manage their lands for the benefit of Utah’s school children and this is primarily accomplished through mineral development or sales to land developers. SITLA has also sold sensitive properties to The Nature Conservancy and Utah Open Lands, a statewide land trust.
These days, conservation dollars cannot keep pace with disposition of state lands, therefore a land exchange is the only viable tool to protect a cherished landscape from total fragmentation.
On the other side of the trade SITLA will receive 42,000 acres of lands more appropriate for development including valuable mineral resources in the Uintah Basin which are slated for development regardless of ownership. These lands were vetted early in the mapping process by Utah Wilderness Coalition and the Grand Canyon Trust and do not conflict with America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act, nor do they contain protected plant and animal species habitats.
The bill has broad bipartisan support from Grand, San Juan and Uintah counties, the City of Moab, the Town of Castle Valley, Governor Huntsman and the Utah legislature, the Utah Education Association, Grand County Backcountry Council, The Nature Conservancy, Utah Open Lands, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, Utah Wilderness Coalition, Utah Rivers Council, Outdoor Industry Association, The National Parks Conservation Association, Utah Guides and Outfitters and the Grand Canyon Trust.
In October 2008, the legislation hangs in the delicate balance of a Congress fraught with partisan political battles. As of October 3rd Congress adjourned for the year unless they return for a possible lame duck session after the November election. In order to pass, the trade bill must be attached to an omnibus lands bill introduced by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee which would be addressed in the lame duck. Once the omnibus bill passes the Senate it must be approved by the House as well.
For details about the bill search H.R.1210 and S.390 at the Library of Congress |
