After Trump opened Bears Ears land to business, prospectors swooped in
All the claims on the 1.2 million acres appear to have been filed by small-scale miners in Utah with an interest in uranium.
Within days of President Donald Trump's decision to open up the 1.2 million acre Bears Ears National Monument in southeast Utah to mining, prospectors began staking their claims. The first day of the 1.2 million acre opening saw 16 claims filed by small-scale miners, according to environmental groups. Steve Bloch, an attorney for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, expressed concern over the rapid timeline and potential environmental damage.
Despite the claims, only a few prospectors disclosed their intended minerals, with one reportedly working in uranium exploration. The rapid rush to stake claims came after Trump reduced the monument's size by about 90 percent in September 2021. The land was previously protected by Barack Obama in 2016. Environmentalists anticipate more claims to be filed, expressing alarm at the disturbance and pollution these prospectors are expected to cause.
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