Sen. Hatch set to tour Utah's national parks, rural communities


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SALT LAKE CITY — As the rumors and worries continue to heat up over a possible new monument designation in Utah, the country's longest sitting senator is set to tour the battleground area and meet with county officials to stress the need for local access.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, will visit the Bears Ears Butte area in southeastern Utah on Wednesday and meet with San Juan County Commissioner Rebecca Benally, a Navajo tribal member opposed to a monument designation.

Benally says the push for the creation of the 1.9 million acre Bears Ears National Monument doesn't reflect the desires of local Native Americans who use the land in multiple ways, including sacred rituals and wood gathering.

The Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, made up of five tribal governments of the Navajo, Hopi, Zuni, and Uintah and Ouray Ute, wants the monument designation to better protect the more than 100,000 archaeological sites scattered throughout the landscape.

Both sides have been to Washington, D.C., to press their case to the Obama administration, with many believing President Barack Obama may use his last months in office to create a swath of new monuments under the Antiquities Act.

Utah's top political leaders are still burning over President Bill Clinton's surprise Grand Staircase-Escalante Monument designation nearly 20 years ago, and they fear that pain will be revisited with the pen of a president they've chaffed at since he took office in 2009.

Hatch, whose visit is described as a commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, will also stress safeguarding the multiple-use mandate of federal land management agencies and emphasize the need for increased coordination among government players.

"The main purpose with Bears Ears is looking out for Utah and making sure Utah has access to its own lands," said Hatch's spokesman, Matt Whitlock.

Hatch will kick off his parks tour with a news conference Tuesday in Salt Lake City to highlight Utah's tourism economy, travel to Zion National Park and also visit Arches National Park at the conclusion of the trip.

Whitlock said the tour also will highlight the senator's work on behalf of transportation needs in Utah, particularly in rural communities. Hatch authored several provisions in an air transportation bill that will help regional airports upgrade or expand their operations — key infrastructure for the state's booming tourism economy.

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Amy Joi O'Donoghue

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