In one of his first acts as President of the United States, Joe Biden issued an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to review the boundaries and conditions of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments.

In one of his first acts as President of the United States, Joe Biden has issued an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to review the boundaries and conditions of the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments. Bears Ears, in San Juan County, was designated by President Barack Obama in 2016.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is pleased to announce Amber Denton Johnson is the field manager for the Monticello Field Office in the Canyon Country District.
Over the past year, Amber served in a temporary assignment as the Acting Monticello Field Manager but assumed the position permanently in November, the day before the desert monolith became an international sensation on a portion of BLM land in Lockhart Basin.

The San Juan County Commission has signaled their intent to continue efforts to restore Bears Ears National Monument to its original size.
At the December 1 commission meeting, Commissioners Willie Grayeyes and Kenneth Maryboy voted to send a letter to President-elect Joe Biden asking his administration to make the restoration of Bears Ears a top priority. Commissioner Bruce Adams voted against sending the letter.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has selected Gary Torres as the permanent Canyon Country District Manager.
The Canyon Country District, comprised of the Moab and Monticello field offices, manages 3.6 million surface acres providing opportunities for recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and other multiple uses.

San Juan County will not participate in travel planning efforts in Bears Ears National Monument. With a 2-1 vote at the April 21 Commission meeting, Commissioners rejected a proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the county and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for the effort.

On December 20, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service approved the Bears Ears National Monument plans. The newly approved plans for the Indian Creek and Shash Jáa units of the monument provide guidance for the future management of lands and resources that are important to residents of San Juan County.

Former San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman has filed a $10 million civil lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for its actions related to the 2014 protest in Recapture Canyon.
Lyman, now serving in the Utah House of Representatives, filed the private action on November 8 in the U.S. District Court District of Utah.  Lyman is serving as his own attorney.

With a scathing rebuke, a federal judge rejected a motion by the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) to become a full-party participant in a landmark public lands case.
Judge Clark Waddoups ruled on September 5 that SUWA could participate in a massive case regarding RS-2477 road rights-of-way on public land in Kane County, but only as a “limited permissive intervenor.”

The San Juan County Commission voted to oppose an upcoming oil and gas lease sale on land maintained by the Bureau of Land Management near Hovenweep National Monument. The vote came at the September 3 Commission meeting.
The resolution calls on the BLM to “defer the sale to prevent the degradation of cultural heritage resources, dark skies, natural resources, visitor experience, water quality, and air quality in the area.”

The Bears Ears National Monument Advisory Committee (MAC) met for two days on June 5-6 at the Hideout Community Center in Monticello.
It was the first meeting of the group, which consists of 15 people appointed by the Department of the Interior.
The group members were selected to represent a variety of interested groups and perspectives.

The Bears Ears National Monument Advisory Committee will meet for the first time this week in public meetings in Monticello on June 5 and 6.
The 15 members of the advisory committee will meet Wednesday, June 5 from 1 to 5 p.m. and Thursday, June 6 from 8 a.m. to noon at the Hideout Community Center. Both meetings are open to the public.

An uproar erupted in the past week after names were released for the initial Bears Ears National Monument Advisory Committee.
Utah Diné Bikéyah, an advocacy group that fought for the original 1.35 million acre national monument, expressed concern that the committee is dominated by local residents who opposed the original monument.
The statement by Utah Diné Bikéyah is printed on page 7.

Fifteen individuals are now officially part of the initial Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Bears Ears National Monument Advisory Committee (BENMAC).
The April 11 appointments are the culmination of a nomination process that began in September 2018. The BENMAC was established as part of the Presidential Proclamations of Presidents Barak Obama and Donald Trump that established, then modified, the Bears Ears National Monument.

Cheryl Bowers, a member of the Blanding City Council, is heading up a petition for county residents who oppose the expansion of Bears Ears National Monument.