September 18, 2017 - WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A leaked copy obtained by the Washington Post of Interior Secretary Zinke’s secret recommendation on national monuments shows the Secretary hopes to strip protections from public lands and waters across the country. Sites that could lose protections include Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in Utah, Cascade-Siskiyou in Oregon, Gold Butte in Nevada, Katahdin Woods and Waters in Maine, Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks and Rio Grande del Norte in New Mexico, Northeast Canyons and Seamounts near Massachusetts and Rose Atoll and Pacific Remote Islands.

The White House has not yet taken action on Zinke’s recommendation.

In response Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune issued the following statement:

“Sec. Zinke’s proposal threatens the very idea of shared public spaces open to all.  Leaving the protection of Native American sacred sites, outdoor recreation destinations, and natural wonders to the goodwill of polluting industries is a recipe for disaster. Secretary Zinke has  just sold out public lands and all the people who rely on them.”
Source: Sierra Club