This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2011, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Re "GOP bills would block new monuments on public land" (Tribune, Sept. 14):
I've run a business in Kanab for 17 years, since before President Bill Clinton designated the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
Throngs of visitors approve of that application of the Antiquities Act, and so do I.
The monument generates powerful economic traction for my shop and community. It enhances our quality of life. Many neighbors live here for the sweeping vistas and recreation opportunities of this region's protected public lands. Perched in the fragile high desert, we depend on the health of the ecosystems and watersheds that surround us.
It's ironic that Rep. Rob Bishop would take back the authority Congress granted to the president more than 100 years ago in the Antiquities Act and instead empower Congress to declare national monuments. As if that body had a track record of levelheaded efficiency, or is known to have only the best interests of the American people at heart.
The brilliance of the Antiquities Act is the expedient way it empowers the executive branch to decisively protect our heritage on public lands. Meanwhile, Congress is charged with wilderness designation; it has largely ignored Utah for 40 years.
Hands off the Antiquities Act!
Susan Hand
Kanab