President Trump signed executive orders last week reducing Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by approximately 90 percent each, citing the need to access critical minerals such as copper, nickel, and uranium. Trump announced the decision flanked by Utah’s Republican congressional delegation and Governor Spencer Cox, with administration officials arguing the move aligns public lands with public interest and residents’ preferences.
However, multiple surveys conducted before the executive orders indicate a majority of Utah residents oppose reducing the monuments. Utah State University researchers found 61 percent of Utahns supported preserving Bears Ears as a national monument, while 53 percent opposed shrinking it. A December 2024 survey by New Bridge Strategies found 71 percent of Utah voters supported keeping Bears Ears protected and 74 percent felt the same about Grand Staircase-Escalante. The Conservation in the West Poll, covering eight Mountain West states, found 91 percent of voters wanted existing national monuments preserved as of January.
Utah political leaders have stated the monument reductions reflect constituent preferences. During the signing ceremony, Republican Representative Celeste Maloy referenced locals concerned about losing multiple uses on federal lands, claiming Trump was responding to Utahns’ wishes. However, academics conducting the surveys noted the disconnect between policy decisions and polling data. Jessica Schad, director of Utah State’s Community and Natural Resources Institute, observed the issue had become politicized and politicians were not accounting for resident preferences.
The monuments had encompassed approximately 3.3 million acres before the reductions. Bears Ears, originally designated by President Barack Obama in 2016 at 1.35 million acres, now contains roughly 121,000 acres. Grand Staircase-Escalante, initially designated by President Bill Clinton in 1996 and expanded to nearly 1.9 million acres, now includes just over 181,500 acres. Trump’s orders also disbanded an intertribal commission that previously consulted with federal agencies on monument management, despite surveys showing nearly 90 percent of Utahns supported tribes having strong roles in managing ancestral lands.
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