UTAH: Committee OKs bill that sets standards for state management of federal lands
Published: Wednesday, March 5, 2014
A state legislative committee in Utah has approved a bill setting standards for how the state would manage federal lands if it were to receive permission to do so.
In the escalating Western political fight over control of public lands, the Utah Wilderness Act wouldn't protect specific areas but instead sends a message that Utah wouldn't manage wilderness lands in a way that would allow for unfettered resource development, said state Rep. Stephen Handy (R).
"We value these natural wonders and our access to them in every way that we value our families," Handy said.
The bill lays out a "Utah way" for wilderness management that would prevent many forms of development, while allowing for water development, power projects and new transmission lines.
A 2012 Utah law, called the Public Lands Transfer Act, called for the state to take control of 30 million acres of land controlled by the federal government, but federal agencies are not likely to agree to such a transfer (Brian Maffly, Salt Lake Tribune, March 4). -- SP
