Las Vegas, NV--Today across Las Vegas, people called on Interior Secretary Zinke to halt his review of national monuments in Nevada. Two monuments in the state are part of the review and in near danger of being reduced in size or stripped of their designation. The event featured important guest speakers including representatives from from Congressman Ruben Kihuen's and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto’s offices and Las Vegas city councilman Isaac Barron. It came just days before Zinke’s final recommendation on the monuments’ status.
In response, Christian Gerlach from Sierra Club’s Our Wild America Campaign in Nevada issued the following statement:
“Once again, Nevadans urged Zinke to keep public lands in public hands-- and to keep them open to the public not closed for fossil fuel extraction. The Basin and Ridge National Monument is one of the sole landscapes of its type unaffected by oil and gas drilling destruction. This review risks reversing its preserved nature.
“Nevada’s outdoor economy is booming and research consistently confirms the benefit of public lands on physical and mental health. Gold Butte is Nevada’s own piece of the Grand Canyon-- one of the most beautiful and lucrative natural wonders in the U.S.
“Nevada is seeing the economic benefit of their national monument designations more clearly than ever. This administration needs to protect our public lands for the sake of jobs and their vast benefits.”
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