Oregon governor makes final plea to Biden to make Owyhee Canyonlands a national monument

Gov. Tina Kotek just made one last plea to President Joe Biden to protect a stunning stretch of the state known as “Oregon’s Grand Canyon” before he leaves office.

Kotek wrote to Biden on Nov. 22, asking that he invoke the Antiquities Act of 1906 and designate more than 1 million acres of the 2.5 million acre area in southeast Oregon, including 15 miles of the Owyhee River, a national monument, a move that would limit ranching use and development. The letter is a follow-up to a similar request in August to protect the area if Congress failed to act.

While Congress can protect areas under the National Wilderness Preservation System and the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, the Antiquities Act allows the president to designate areas national monuments if they hold cultural, natural or historical significance.

Despite years of proposals from Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both Democrats, and a recent proposal from Oregon’s U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, a Republican representing the state’s 2nd District, both houses of Congress have failed to vote on preserving the Owyhee Canyonlands in perpetuity. Bentz’s proposal, introduced in early November, stands little chance of passing before Congress adjourns at the end of the year. Wyden and Merkley’s proposal, which could still pass and has been years in the making, has so far only cleared the Senate Natural Resources Committee and has not been voted on in the full Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2024/12/03/oregon-governor-makes-final-plea-to-biden-to-make-owyhee-canyonlands-a-national-monument/