Tippets: Review of National Monument Designations, Sea Lions and Steelhead, Kenai Peninsula Dam Will Not Move Forward

May 3, 2017 By: Erin Block

  • President Donald Trump has announced an order to review all national monument designations made in the past 21 years, including Utah’s Bears Ears National Monument as well as Grand Staircase. “Utah’s national monuments are our first line of defense against the very real specter of climate change, providing resiliency to not only the species within them, but also to nearby communities,” said Jen Ujifusa, legislative director of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. “President Trump and the Utah delegation should focus their energies on solving America’s challenges, rather than unraveling the solutions that are already working.” Thomas Burr reports in The Salt Lake City Tribune.
  • Sea lions have been spotted moving up smaller rivers in the Pacific Northwest, and are devouring winter steelhead whose populations are already running low. Biologists are struggling to come up with funding to combat the threat. Via Oregon Live.
  • Following vocal public opposition at recent meetings, Chugach Electric Association has announced it will end its study of a hydroelectric dam at Snow River on the Kenai Peninsula. Via Alaska Daily News.