Undated photo of the Owyhee Canyonlands in southeastern Oregon. Gov. Tina Kotek is asking the Biden administration to designate the canyon a national monument.
Stephen Baboi
Following nearly five years of negotiations and three attempts by Oregon’s U.S. senators to get federal protection for southeast Oregon’s Owyhee Canyonlands, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek is throwing her hat into the fight.
Kotek on Aug. 5 wrote to President Joe Biden, asking that he designate a large share of the 2.5 million-acre canyonlands and a stretch of the Owyhee River, often called “Oregon’s Grand Canyon,” a national monument under the Antiquities Act of 1906 should Congress not pass legislation this year to protect it. For years, Congress has failed to vote on proposals to protect the canyonlands under the National Wilderness Preservation System and the National Wild and Scenic River System. The Antiquities Act allows the president to designate areas national monuments if they hold cultural, natural or historical significance.
“The Antiquities Act has a long history of being used to protect America’s most cherished landscapes, from the Grand Canyon to the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument here in Oregon,” Kotek wrote. “Permanent safeguards will protect the Owyhee Canyonlands against the growing threats of development, extraction and other detrimental activities and, most importantly, will pay endless dividends for generations to come.”
Related: 400,000 acres of public lands in Eastern Oregon get environmental protections
The canyonlands have significant health, economic and cultural value to the Northern Paiute, Bannock and Shoshone tribes. They are a source of tourism dollars in Malheur County and are home to threatened sage grouse, as well as bighorn sheep, elk and deer. The animals and their habitats face growing risks from wildfire due to invasive grasses and juniper. Fish species in the Owyhee River face challenges from poorly preserved riparian areas and cattle grazing.
Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, both Democrats, first proposed the bill called the Malheur Community Empowerment for the Owyhee Act in 2019, following requests from ranchers in the area for intervention amid prolonged debate among ranchers, conservationists, tribes, hunting and fishing groups and government officials over how to preserve parts of the canyonlands.
The first proposal failed to make it out of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. A second attempt in 2022 also failed to advance, and the latest attempt in July 2023 remains in the committee. This iteration of the bill calls for protection of 1.1 million acres of the canyonlands and a 15-mile stretch of the Owyhee River, the same areas Kotek wants protected. The bill, signed by southeast Oregon ranchers, conservationists, tribal leaders and small business owners in the area, also proposes to transfer 30,000 acres of federal and private land into a trust overseen by the Burns Paiute Tribe.
“By securing this designation, you will collectively send a powerful message that people from different perspectives and ideological persuasions can still come together to accomplish great feats,” Kotek wrote to Biden.
Related: Federal powers seek compromise on protections for Oregon’s Owyhee
Oregon Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501(c)(3) public charity. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Lynne Terry for questions: info@oregoncapitalchronicle.com . Follow Oregon Capital Chronicle on Facebook and X.