President Donald Trump will shrink the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument by about half, to 700,000 to 1.2 million acres, following the recommendation of his Interior secretary, according to a staffer for Sen. Orrin Hatch.
Ron Dean, Hatch’s central and eastern Utah director, revealed the potential magnitude of monument reductions Tuesday while fielding questions from the Utah Legislature’s Commission for the Stewardship of Public Lands.
He also confirmed Bears Ears National Monument will be redrawn in the range of 100,000 to 300,000 acres when the president visits Utah early next month. It’s currently 1.35 million acres.
But Dean cautioned that any monument reduction could be fleeting since a future president could reverse whatever action Trump takes.