Editorial: Speak up for Hanford Reach, other monuments

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

They want public comment? Give them public comment.

Following an executive order signed by President Trump last month, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has ordered the review of 22 national monuments and five more marine national monuments that were established since 1996 by Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama under the authority granted presidents by the 1906 Antiquities Act.

The intent of reviewing past presidents’ national monument designations is clear: providing cover for President Trump to shrink the size of monuments, change the public lands’ protections or eliminate the monuments all together.

Among the seven national monuments in the Northwest, three fall under terms of the review: Cascade-Siskiyou in Oregon, Craters of the Moon in Idaho and Washington state’s Hanford Reach.

The review, Zinke said last week, “finally gives a voice to local communities and states when it comes to Antiquities Act monument designations,” calling local input “critical” to federal land management and adding that there is “no predetermined outcome for any monument.”

The public has 60 days following formal publication of the notice this Friday to comment on each of the national monument designations. Utah’s Bears Ears National Monument, created by President Obama last year, is the exception; the comment period is limited to 15 days.

http://www.heraldnet.com/opinion/editorial-speak-up-for-hanford-reach-other-monuments/?utm_source=DAILY+HERALD&utm_campaign=3226480089-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d81d073bb4-3226480089-228635337

[enough]

1. Only 15 days to comment on Bears Ears. Their evil knows no bounds.

Comments can be mailed to Monument Review, MS-1530, U.S. Department of Interior, 1849 C Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20240 or submitted online after May 12 at https://www.regulations.gov/ and searching for “DOI-2017-0002.”

[More_Cowbell]

2. I tried to find a way to tell John Oliver about this

He spoke recently about the net neutrality regulations and his show even created a shotcut to get through the FCC's Byzantine comment system. But I couldn't find a way to contact the show. I assume that they'll have other things to talk about on the next show, but he has a large audience for this kind of thing. As you say, the 15-day comment period is especially troubling.

Maybe Stephen Colbert would talk about it?