On Saturday morning, leadership from each of the five Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition Tribes came together with federal agencies to sign a cooperative agreement, formalizing the Bears Ears Commission’s co-management of Bears Ears National Monument.
Later that day, the agreement was commemorated with the unveiling of the new Bears Ears welcome sign, which incorporates the insignia of the five Coalition Tribes who will be co-managing the monument alongside federal agencies.
This agreement ensures that the Coalition Tribes will have more say in the day-to-day management of Bears Ears National Monument, and that Tribal expertise and traditional perspectives will guide joint decision-making for the monument moving forward.
Saturday’s agreement is a step towards addressing the fraught relationship between the federal government and U.S. Tribes and Pueblos, after a long history of the removal of Indigenous people from their ancestral lands.
“Today,” noted Carleton Bowekaty, co-chair of the Bears Ears Commission and lieutenant governor of the Pueblo of Zuni, “instead of beingremoved from a landscape to make way for a public park, we are being invited back to our ancestral homelands to help repair them and plan for a resilient future.”
This agreement is also significant in that that it may serve as a precedent for future agreements between the federal government and other Tribes and communities of color.
Learn more about the co-management agreement here.
While the signing of the this co-management agreement is certainly reason to celebrate, in many ways, the most important work in Bears Ears is just beginning. The entire community needs to be involved as the management moves forward, and the first opportunity for participation has already arisen:
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is currently considering two proposed water wells within the boundaries of Bears Ears National Monument: the Slickhorn Allotment Water Well and the Red House Pasture Water Well. These proposed wells are intended to ease and benefit livestock grazing in an area that is already drastically affected by prolonged drought.
When drilling new wells–as is the case with any development project–the residual impacts on the nearby habitat and cultural sites are permanent. Although cattle grazing is an existing use, and thus permitted within the national monument, it is essential that we also do everything in our power to protect Bears Ears’ cultural and ecological resources for generations to come.
This is your chance to engage in the management of Bears Ears National Monument— there are important decisions being made as we speak, and it’s more important than ever to make your voice heard by speaking up on this issue.
Want to learn more about these proposed well projects? Click the links below for additional resources.
Why are so many new water wells to be drilled in Bears Ears?
Slickhorn Allotment Water Wells Project NEPA Register (BLM)
Red House Pasture Water Wells Project NEPA Register (BLM)
The BLM’s Public Comment Period for both of these proposed water wells ends this Friday, June 24th. Make your comment now!
Comment on the Slickhorn Allotment Water Well Project here.
Comment on the Red House Pasture Water Well Project here.