Editor's Note: We recognize that things feel very heavy on a multitude of fronts right now, and we share that sentiment while keeping hope and community firmly in our hearts and in our mission. Thank you for your support, and for continuing to stand up for the protection of our shared public lands.
Utah Delegation Targets Grand Staircase-Escalante Management Plan As we reported last week, Utah’s congressional delegation is expected to introduce a “Joint Resolution” in Congress that, if passed, would undo the current management plan for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This would be a devastating blow to the monument and could turn it into a wildly different place: one where out-of-control off-road vehicle use, landscape-level clearcutting of native pinyon-juniper forests, and other extractive activities are all possible. We cannot let this happen. Enabling this resolution is a law known as the Congressional Review Act (CRA). Republicans in Congress have lately been weaponizing the CRA against America’s public lands: first to overturn BLM resource management plans in several western states, then—just last week—to strike at the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota (Senate action pending), and now to attack a national monument. “This is a direct assault by Utah politicians on one of the crown jewels of America’s system of federal public lands,” said SUWA Legal Director Steve Bloch. “Any attempt to leverage this obscure federal law against the monument is an effort to thwart the will of millions of Americans who have repeatedly stood up in support of Grand Staircase-Escalante, its wild redrock landscape, and its irreplaceable cultural and fossil resources.” (Read our full statement). Not only have polls repeatedly shown strong public support for national monument designations, a recent study by Headwaters Economics echoes earlier findings that national monuments “help promote stable and diversified local economies.” The nearly 30-year-old Grand Staircase–Escalante remains as popular and beloved as ever, and so does our resolve to defend it. >> Take action now to defend Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
>> Take action now to Protect the Boundary Waters Wilderness Photo © Nathan St. Andre
Rejected Red Cliffs Highway Proposal Revived Yet Again The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has re-approved a proposal from the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT), at the behest of Washington County, for the construction of a four-lane Northern Corridor Highway through the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area near St. George, Utah.
This decision reverses a December 2024 rejection of the same proposal by the BLM and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and marks the eighth time the controversial highway has been considered. The project has been halted on every previous attempt over concerns related to wildlife, public safety, legal compliance, and community opposition. Its approval would set a dangerous precedent for congressionally-protected public lands across the U.S. The BLM’s 2024 Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement found that the project would increase wildfire probability and frequency, permanently eliminate designated critical tortoise habitat, spread noxious weeds and invasive plants, and harm more cultural and historical resources than any other alternative considered. Yet here we are again.
This is not the end of the story. A coalition of local residents and state and national organizations, including SUWA, is committed to ensuring that Red Cliffs National Conservation Area remains protected. >> Read recent coverage of this issue on SFGATE (with quotes from SUWA Wildlands Attorney Kya Marienfeld) and KUER. Photo © Bob Wick
BLM Issues Disappointing Decision on West Desert Transmission Line In mid-November, over a year after finalizing the environmental analysis for the Cross-Tie Transmission Line project, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued its decision authorizing the power line. It is slated to run from Nephi, Utah to Ely, Nevada.
Though the BLM selected its “preferred alternative,” which is largely the alternative SUWA advocated for, it declined to adopt our recommended and common-sense adjustments that would have protected wilderness-quality lands and required that the transmission line solely transport energy derived from renewable sources. Instead, the BLM now admits the Cross-Tie Transmission Line will primarily carry electricity generated by the burning of fossil fuels. We’re disappointed that the BLM declined to make simple improvements to the Cross-Tie project. Had it done so, the transmission line would have been a significant step toward increasing renewable energy distribution across the West without compromising the wild nature of Utah’s West Desert. Thanks to all who submitted comments on this project. SUWA will continue to monitor the wilderness-quality lands along the path of the Cross-Tie Transmission Line and engage with the agency to ensure that surface-disturbing impacts are minimized and mitigated wherever possible. Photo © Ray Bloxham/SUWA
Dangerous Deal Advances State Control of National Forests In early January, the Trump administration and the state of Utah announced an agreement to assert state control over 8 million acres of national forests while cutting public oversight and weakening environmental reviews. The agreement sets the stage for vastly expanded commercial logging as well as state control and management over a host of national forest resources, including minerals, recreation, and grazing. All told, the intent of the agreement is clear: to hand publicly owned national forests over to the state of Utah to benefit corporate interests. This is a significant escalation in Utah officials’ long-held goal of wresting control, and ultimately ownership, of public land from the American people. “It’s essential that our national forests remain in public hands and are not handed over to the state of Utah for short-term gain or other forms of destructive mismanagement,” said SUWA Legal Director Steve Bloch. “We fear that the new Agreement unveiled today does exactly that: It sets the stage for Utah officials to have both a heavy hand and the loudest voice in how our national forests are managed, crowding out all other stakeholders. That’s not how this is supposed to work, and we’ll be watching closely to see how the agreement plays out on the ground.” >> Read SUWA’s press release for additional details, or this piece from RideApart, with a headline that gets straight to the point: Feds And State Lawmakers Are Circumventing Public Lands Opinion In Utah. Photo © Tim Peterson
2026 Stewardship Project Calendar Goes Live Soon! We are only a week out from our 2026 Stewardship Project Calendar launch! This year, we have a full slate of nearly 30 volunteer projects on offer, with our first trips beginning in early March. Please consider joining us in the field. Registration Details: On Wednesday, February 4, registration opens for exclusive early access for SUWA members. Not a current member? There is still time to join or renew for early access to our Stewardship projects, invitations to special events, and more. On Friday, February 6, registration opens to the general public. Anyone can get a jump on registration by completing a 2026 General Application. Once live, you will find our project listings on this page, where you can review and apply; please direct all questions to volunteer@suwa.org. We are excited to see old friends and new faces on public lands across Utah—including our magnificent national monuments—where we will continue to work together to protect wild places from the ground up! Click here to learn more about SUWA's Stewardship Program. Photo © SUWA  | 
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