National opinion: Steve Pearce endangers Arizona’s lands and livelihoods

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) exists to wisely manage our public lands now and for future generations. But the next nominee to lead the department — Steve Pearce — has spent his career working toward just the opposite.

Now that his nomination has passed through committee, he’s one step closer to endangering our nation’s and Arizona's most precious resources. Other nominees from this Administration have shown that appointing someone whose views don’t reflect the broader public good is a grave danger.

Our great state boasts more national monuments than any other, and over 12 million acres of BLM-managed land. These include archaeological sites, unique deserts, and spectacular cliffs, all bringing invaluable income for communities throughout the region. These lands also surround one of the world’s most iconic wonders — the Grand Canyon. I began and ended my career there, retiring as Superintendent in 2011, during which time I learned the necessity of wise leadership of BLM lands.

The Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument is one of the most recently designated spaces, set aside in 2023 after much of our state’s Congressional delegation lobbied for it. It is home to endangered species, commemorates important locations for Indigenous communities, and preserves thousands of years of history.

Perhaps most crucially, Baaj helps the waters of the Colorado River remain clean and flowing to provide drinking water for much of the Southwest. Yet despite containing just 1% of the country’s uranium reserves, there has been significant pressure to allow mining there. This would endanger clean water for many of us across this side of the country.

The monument designation should have prevented such reckless mining in perpetuity, but a Justice Department opinion issued last year claims that the presidential administration has the authority to revoke them. The Washington Post has since reported that Baaj is now in the crosshairs.

At this crucial moment for Baaj and all public lands around our state, we need leaders we can trust to protect them — and Mr. Pearce isn’t one of them. During his tenure in Congress, he did everything he could to roll back the laws and regulations that safeguard public lands. He has advocated for the federal government to sell off parcels to the highest bidder and attempted to pass legislation along such lines. He has even gone so far as to suggest counties should take land away from the federal government and arrest those who steward those lands.

Mr. Pearce has also been a consistent opponent of monuments specifically. Not only has he tried to downsize existing monuments and prevent any new designations, but he’s proposed legislation that would limit the Antiquities Act itself — making it harder for presidents to designate monuments at all. Without this vital policy, we likely would not have the Grand Canyon itself, as it was first protected as a monument.

Mr. Pearce has made claims that monuments hurt local jobs and economies, but this simply isn’t true. Research shows that monuments actually increase local incomes. In fact, all the BLM-managed lands in Arizona are a vital economic driver. Recreational activities on them brought over $750 million to the state last year.

At a committee hearing last week, Mr. Pearce called the Grand Canyon “one of the most magnificent” in the world, and claimed that he would work with Senators to protect monument designations, but can we believe such a claim when his entire record shows otherwise? Arizonans and all Americans deserve a BLM Director that has a record of stewardship and a proven understanding of the broad value of public lands.

Voters agree: A poll from earlier this year found that nearly two-thirds of Arizonans believe rollbacks of laws that conserve our public lands are a serious problem. And an overwhelming 93% want monument designations kept in place.

The stakes are too high to gamble with our most treasured places and most valuable resources. It’s time to weigh in and let our elected leaders know they need to help us protect our public lands, from Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni to the many beloved monuments and landscapes around America.