Land Conservation

The Trump administration wants to do away with the decades-old Roadless Rule, saying it would reduce "regulatory burdens." Over 99% of public comments want to keep it.

Hunters and hikers were among almost 133,000 people opposing potential changes to the Travel Management Rule in national forests. Snowmobile groups were part of the 1% of commenters in favor.

UPR reporters recently flew over the Dinosaur National Monument and John Wesley Powell National Conservation Area. The two areas are managed very differently.

The accused killer of Charlie Kirk is going to trial, the Trump Administration is considering repealing the Roadless Rule, and Google wants to power a data center in southwest Utah.

When the rule was first enacted in 2001, the government held hundreds of public hearings that took nearly two years. For ending the rule, there are no public hearings scheduled except in Alaska.

The proposal would flip current motorized use rules on their head, allowing access unless designated otherwise. Recreationists called the change overdue, but conservationists fear a free-for-all.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the rule hampers land and wildfire management. Environmental groups argue that, according to the government's own data, it would actually increase fire risk.

Conservationists argue wilderness study areas are a way to protect land, while some outdoor recreationists argue it locks up land. Public comment on the proposal is open until Friday.

The poll, conducted by the National Parks Conservation Association, comes amid a federal overhaul to conservation that focuses instead on economic considerations like energy.

Utah political leaders claimed the monument designations locked up too much land. Conservation groups argued that land needs to be protected for future generations.