Public lands are core to the American West.
They're part of the very fabric of being around here. They're explored by hikers, campers, hunters, fishermen, and all manner of off-highway vehicles and their riders and drivers. They're used in centering one's self, to feel a part of the land, and gain a better understanding of how we, as its caretakers, can be better stewards so that it's conserved for future generations.
While I'm more of a Calvin & Hobbes man, its creator Bill Watterson borrowed a lot from the great conservationist Aldo Leopold, who put it best, saying, "We abuse land because we see it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect." And that's what public lands allow us to do. To be a part of its community. Without it, without that tether to those lands and wild places, we'll abuse it. We'll sell it off and squander one of the greatest natural resources ever known.
And it's that push and pull that's become a main talking point within the fight for Utah's open Senate seat, the seat Mitt Romney will vacate this year. It's also become a focal point for me as Utah's attorney general is currently suing the federal government for control of a parcel of BLM land it has no right to. A parcel it wants to sell off, develop, and otherwise destroy.
Something I'm absolutely opposed to.
There are currently three candidates vying for the role, a Republican, a Democrat, and a supposedly Independent. Before we go any further, I don't necessarily ascribe to any party's individual platforms. I think most people don't. But in the instance of public lands, I'm pro keeping them public, keeping them open to the public's respective pursuits, and pro keeping them out of politicians' hands.
The three candidates, Republican John Curtis, Democrat Caroline Gleich, and Independent Carlton Bowen all have wildly different stances on public land. According to The Salt Lake Tribune, the three squared off on their stances in the first debate, with Curtis saying he's pro public lands, but that he'd resort to State legislation to safeguard recreation and extractive development so that federal encroachment doesn't occur. Specifically, he called out the recent issues revolving around the Democrat-led Bears Ears area, which we discussed recently, as well as the handful of issues that've occurred.
Gleich, a mountaineer, outdoorswoman, and the lone Democrat, however, stated that public lands are the public's. "Right now, our public lands are under attack, and we have seen this massive effort to transfer our federally protected public lands to state control,” stated the nominee, adding, “And we know the vast majority of the time that happens, they are sold to the highest bidder for energy development, mineral extraction so that politicians can line their pockets.” She's not wrong, as Utah's legislature has been pushing for more development of public lands for the last two decades.
Bowen, however, showed contempt for public lands and the powers of both the federal and state governments in terms of managing such important resources, criticizing the Antiquities Act, saying, "These monuments (Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante) lock up public roads and private lands within their boundaries."
Curtis, however, backed the AG's efforts after the debate to wrest control over federal land back to Utah, telling the Tribune, "I’m a strong advocate for those closest to the land are going to take the best care of it.” While I don't on principle disagree with the statement, the folks who would be set to inherit the land, i.e. Utah's legislature, don't have the resources to manage it by their own account, nor do they wish to. Again, by their own account.
Now here's where I want to reiterate, there's a lot left to be desired in how the federal government manages public land. They have a tendancy to overreact (from both sides of the aisle), underfund, and manage through committee that, paraphrasing Curtis, aren't the closest to the land.
Take the recent Bears Ears plan the Biden Administration put in place as evidence of just that.
But the state's managenment of public lands is often worse than the federal government's, especially in the case of most Western states. Oftentimes when federal land is released to said states' control, they're sold off to the highest bidder or sold to extractive industries like gas and oil and mineral that destroy once great habitats. Whether through sales or land leases, they cut off your access to your public lands.
At least until someone sues them and wins, another party comes into power, or private individuals or companies purchase the land and place them into trusts.
There's still a month before the senate election, and there's a host of other issues that voters will care about besides public land access when they go to the polls. However, public lands are incredibly important to me, as well as the readers of RideApart, and those who recreate without the use of machines. I do hope that people don't just vote along party lines because that's how they've always done it or they're dyed in the wool Republican or Democrat, but that they take the time to balance everything. And I hope that those in the Utah state legislature don't prevail in their lawsuit against the BLM, as it'd mean less public land for us to enjoy.
I'll leave you with one more Leopold quote, as I find it particularly poignant to this topic of public land. The great philosopher said, "To those devoid of imagination, a blank place on the map is a useless waste; to others, the most valuable part."
Vote accordingly.
