On its 112th birthday, Antiquities Act faces threats

Happy birthday to the Antiquities Act, which turns 112 today. What an illustrious history it has, and what amazing gifts it has given to the American people.

What does the Antiquities Act do, and why is it important to you?

First, the act made it illegal to destroy or remove historic or prehistoric articles from public lands. Section II of the act says: “That the President of the United States is hereby authorized, in his discretion, to declare by public proclamation historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest that are situated upon the lands owned or controlled by the Government of the United States to be national monuments … .”

President Teddy Roosevelt, who signed the bill into law, used the Antiquities Act to create America’s first national monument at Devils Tower in Wyoming in 1906. All told, Roosevelt created 18 national monuments, including Grand Canyon in 1908. (Grand Canyon became a national park 11 years later.)

With the power Congress granted to them by the Antiquities Act, 16 presidents — eight Republicans and eight Democrats — created 157 national monuments, among them Pompeys Pillar and north-central Montana’s own beloved Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in 2001. (Please note: Monuments can only be created on land owned by the federal government.)

With such a magnificent track record, the Antiquities Act’s significance in protecting treasures for future generations to enjoy would be difficult to overstate. “In shaping public policy to protect a broad array of cultural and natural resources, the impact of the Antiquities Act is unmatched,” a National Park Service website says.

So you’d think that such a law would be untouchable, even in today’s divisive political environment. But that’s not the case.

Here are some of the threats:

• In December, President Trump shrank Bears Ear National Monument by about 85 percent, and axed Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument by 46 percent — unprecedented attacks on the Antiquities Act that are being challenged in federal court. Legal experts argue that presidents don’t have the power to undo monuments created by their predecessors.

• The deceptively named National Monument Creation and Protection Act (H.R. 3990) would gut the Antiquities Act and pose a threat to every existing national monument. U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte, R-Mont., voted for this bill in a House committee.

• The equally misnamed Improved National Monument Designation Process Act (S. 33) also would greatly damage the Antiquities Act. U.S. Sen. Steve Daines of Montana is a co-sponsor.

• Other bills that would weaken the Antiquities Act are the MAST Act (H.R. 1489), the National Monument Designation Transparency and Accountability Act (H.R. 2284) and its companion bill in the Senate (S.B. 132).

I’ll also note that Daines and Gianforte have introduced bills to eliminate Wilderness Study Areas on Forest Service land in Montana, and Gianforte has sponsored a bill to eliminate WSAs on BLM land in our state, which would strip a level of protection from land that’s within the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument. Wilderness Study Areas are public lands that have been managed for decades for the protection of their wildlife habitat, clean water and wildness.

How do other Montanans feel about public lands? The new Montana Public Lands Survey showed that 78 percent of Montanans believe presidents should continue to have the power to protect public land as national monuments. Ninety percent believe that enhancing and protecting public lands has a positive impact on “maintaining what is best about Montana.”

Public lands, including our national monuments, should be protected and preserved, not attacked. So, as we celebrate the birthday of the Antiquities Act, please give it the gift of your support and let our elected officials in Washington,

D.C., know where you stand.

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Havre resident Karen Datko is a member of the board of directors of the Friends of the Missouri Breaks Monument.