- Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen is urging the Trump administration to reconsider federal land protections near the Grand Canyon allowing for mining activities. He sent a letter to the Interior Department requesting a review of a Biden-era national monument designation encompassing nearly 1 million acres that could house billions of dollars in uranium deposits.
- Supporters of the monument designation say it preserves cultural and environmental resources. Critics claim it limits economic opportunities and harms U.S. energy independence.
- The Interior Department is already reviewing national monument boundaries as part of broader energy expansion efforts.
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Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen is urging the Trump administration to reconsider federal land protections near the Grand Canyon to allow for mining activities. In a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the Republican state senator called for a review of a Biden-era federal designation that protects nearly 1 million acres around the Grand Canyon as a national monument.
“With the stroke of a pen, President Biden condemned to dormancy more than 900,000 acres of rich Arizona ground,” Petersen wrote. “Prohibiting productive use of land in Arizona affects jobs, families, and local economies.”
Why is this push to allow mining around the Grand Canyon happening?
Petersen argues that the restrictions have prevented access to valuable energy resources, including uranium deposits. He contends that increasing domestic uranium production could help reduce reliance on foreign imports. In 2023, U.S. uranium production accounted for only 0.4% of the amount American nuclear power plants need annually.
According to Petersen, the region near the Grand Canyon may contain more than 300 million pounds of uranium, a resource he equated to the energy produced by 13 billion barrels of oil, across an area comparable in size to Rhode Island. The Arizona lawmaker added that mining it would create more than 1,000 new jobs. He says it would also provide a $29 billion benefit to local economies in Northern Arizona and Southern Utah over four decades.
What are the arguments for and against the national monument designation?
Supporters of the national monument designation say preserving cultural and environmental resources is necessary. Critics, including Petersen, claim the restrictions limit economic opportunities and do not directly protect the Grand Canyon itself.
What happens next?
The push to lift federal protections in Arizona aligns with broader national efforts under the Trump administration. Last week, the Interior Department ordered a review of all national monument boundaries as part of an initiative to expand U.S. energy production. However, the department has not yet specified which monuments may be subject to boundary adjustments.