Plans to shrink Gold Butte monument never realized

WASHINGTON — A recommendation by the Trump administration to reduce the boundary of Gold Butte National Monument in Nevada was never implemented, leaving the decision to President-elect Joe Biden and the incoming administration.

The 300,000-acre national monument about 90 miles northeast of Las Vegas, was established in the last months of the Obama administration following local efforts in Nevada to restrict grazing, mining and recreational vehicles in habitat on the Nevada-Arizona border.

But the Obama administration designation for Gold Butte was immediately challenged by the incoming Trump administration. Former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke issued a report that recommended reductions and changes for several monuments including those in Utah and at Gold Butte.

The administration’s decision to reduce Gold Butte’s boundaries during a number of changes in the Department of Interior, which included the resignation of Zinke over unrelated matters, was never completed.

“The Trump administration’s failure to follow through on its plans to shrink Gold Butte is a victory for Nevadans and for the West,” said Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., an early proponent of establishing the national monument.

Titus said, “Gold Butte is a natural treasure many of us fought to protect.”

Former Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., urged Obama to create the Nevada monument in the waning days before both the senator and the president left office.

In his recommendation, Zinke sought major revisions to two national monuments in Utah, Bears Ears and Grand-Staircase Escalante. Members of Utah’s congressional delegation sought the changes saying the protections from the designation would cause economic hardships to rural communities.

Zinke visited Gold Butte. Following his report, he told regional reporters that the changes he wanted to implement at the Nevada national monument were minor, but needed in order to allow a local water district access to natural springs.

“We have not drawn up the maps specifically, but it’s a small percentage of Gold Butte,” Zinke told reporters.

The Trump administration proposal for the reduction at Gold Butte was hailed by Nevada Republicans but opposed by Democrats in the congressional delegation.

Energy and agriculture groups, as well as conservative organizations, such as the Heritage Foundation, favored a rollback of public land protections, while conservation and wildlife organizations fought to protect Gold Butte acreage.

“President Trump has pursued an anti-conservationist agenda and repeatedly sought to undermine protections for public lads in Nevada and across the country,” Titus said.

Gold Butte, located east of Las Vegas, is noted for its sandstone and rock formations, habitat for desert bighorn sheep, rustic mining artifacts and rock art and drawings from Native Americans.

Biden nominated Rep. Deb Haaland, a Native American from New Mexico, to serve as the first women to head the Department of Interior.

While serving in Congress, Haaland filed legislation to further protect sacred Native American sites and artifacts on public lands, including those at Gold Butte.

Titus said she would look forward to working with Haaland, if confirmed, to preserve Gold Butte for future generations.

Contact Gary Martin at gmartin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @garymartin on Twitter.