Trump to shrink 2 Utah national monuments by 90%

President Donald Trump on Monday reduced the size of two national monuments in Utah, undoing protections established by former presidents on public lands that are sacred among many Native Americans.

Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in southern Utah have ancient cliff dwellings, petroglyphs and scenic canyons, as well as coal and uranium deposits that state officials want made available for development.

Trump signed the proclamations at a White House gathering flanked by Republican officials including Utah's governor and two senators, who framed the move as an overdue correction of federal overreach.

The ​proclamations reduced ⁠the Bears Ears National Monument to 121,100 acres from 1.36 million acres, and cut the ⁠Grand Staircase-Escalante National ‌Monument to 181,500 acres from 1.87 million acres.