Opinion: Value of designated monuments is great

Deborah Gangloff

If you want to recreate your childhood road trip across the Southwest and pass on that life-changing experience to your kids, now is the time. Just search online for “Colorado’s National Monuments” to get inspired. 

But move quickly. As a recent Coloradoan article points out ("Colorado national monument could lose designation"), those monuments may be a thing of the past. If President Trump has his way, it won’t be long before these public lands are unprotected, the infrastructure is defunded, artifacts are looted, development proceeds and the quiet spaces are filled with ATVs.

With yet another vague and confusing executive order, Trump has directed Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to “review” dozens of national monuments within the next 120 days with an eye toward eliminating or shrinking them. 

Since President Teddy Roosevelt in 1906, 16 presidents from both parties have protected public lands and historic sites — from Maine’s Acadia to Hawaii's Papahānaumokuākea, from Civil Rights in Birmingham, Alabama to Cesar Chavez in Keene, California. America’s national monuments tell a more complete story of our nation.

Trump and Zinke are putting these sites and our heritage at risk. Without national monuments, family road trips won’t be the same. Without national monuments, many of Colorado’s local economies will never recover.

National parks and public lands and waters are a critical part of the nation’s economy. Rural and western communities rely on tourism and outdoor recreation — income created by visitors to the country’s most unique sites.

Communities like mine in Cortez want more of this economic growth, not less. Visitors to cultural and historic sites spend $800 billion a year, creating a $2 billion payroll. Over 78 percent of tourists are these “heritage” tourists who stay longer and spend more. Locally, Mesa Verde National Park’s 550,000 annual visitors spend $55 million on local lodging, food, gas and souvenirs.

Regions surrounding national monuments have seen continued growth or improvement in employment, personal income, and increased per-capita income. Rural counties in the West with more than 30 percent protected public lands saw jobs increase by 345 percent over areas without protected lands.

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, with its 10,000 to 20,000 archaeological sites, has helped the economy here in Montezuma County. Between 2000 and 2008, our population increased by 5 percent, service jobs grew by 10 percent, and per capita income grew by 15 percent. There was also an increase in recreational opportunities and associated businesses like tours, hiking, biking, RV’ing, fishing and hunting.

And a surprise to most: The monument lands are 80 percent leased with 190 wells contributing 50 percent of the county’s budget. Canyons of the Ancients is a prime example of how energy extraction can be balanced with the protection of cultural and natural resources.

Trump’s order is deeply unpopular — the public overwhelmingly opposes attacks on national parks, public lands and waters. Four of five western voters supported keeping protections for existing monuments in place. Nine in 10 voters support presidential proposals to protect some public lands and waters as parks, wildlife refuges and wilderness.

Native American tribes want national monument status that enhances protection against looting or vandalism of sacred sites — their heritage. Monuments recently established near the Four Corners have the strong support of the Pueblos, Zuni, Hopi, Ute, and Navajo tribes.

I fear the president’s order is part of an effort to sell off our lands and waters to the highest bidders. One bad omen: In January, the House of Representatives valued public lands at $0, smoothing the way for a public lands sell-off.

The cultural resources community and our tribal partners respectfully ask our Colorado congressional delegation to resist any attempt to reduce the benefits of our public lands: to resist sell-offs, efforts to reduce law enforcement that protects our lands, and efforts to foist the care of public lands onto cash-strapped states.

Deborah Gangloff, Ph.D., is president and CEO of Crow Canyon Archaeological Center.