Trump Set To Auction Drilling Rights In Prized National Parks

The Interior Department confirmed plans Thursday that will expand drilling, mining and grazing in an area of southern Utah that was previously protected as two separate national monuments. The decision comes more than two years after the Trump administration cut the size of those two monuments, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante.

A coalition of groups immediately sued the administration after Trump announced the new boundaries for the monuments, according to the Washington Post. That lawsuit is still pending today.

The discussed land in southern Utah is home to expansive badlands, narrow canyons and rock formations that are sacred to many Native American nations and greatly valued by scientists and outdoor enthusiasts.

The area is also home to significant amounts of oil, gas and coal.

Read more via The Washington Post.