Skies Over Utah National Parks Threatened!

In yet another 11th hour attempt to plunder the natural wonders of this great nation, the Bush Administration is set to auction off some of the crown jewels for oil and natural gas exploration, lands in and around Utah’s famed national parks! Seen here is a nighttime image of Canyonlands National Park by National Park Service scientist Dan Duriscoe: this image overlooks parcels 201 to 208, which are scheduled to be leased for energy development.

Emergency Call to Action:

A national land auction on December 19th will determine the fate of over 300,000 acres of wilderness lands in Utah, USA.  At stake are the vistas near Canyonlands and Arches National Parks and Dinosaur National Monument, areas of outstanding scenic quality and home to some of the most pristine skies in the continental United States.

The auction will open these 300,000 acres to lease for the purpose of natural gas and oil exploration. Anyone who has seen the map of the Earth at night has seen the light created by natural gas burn-off operations. Imagine how this ceaseless glow would dilute the pristine skies of the Utah parks! A vital piece of our natural heritage is as stake.

We urge you to write your Senators, Representative, and the Bureau of Land Management to alert them to your concerns. For your convenience, we have provided links to determine your Senator and Representatives, and included an address for the BLM Administrator. A sample letter that can be copied and pasted to an email is provided on the IDA Web site.

Find your Senator

Find your Representative

Contact the Bureau of Land Management Administrator James Caswell
United States Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
James Caswell, Director
1849 C Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20240

A complete list of suggested contacts is available on the IDA Web site.

Read the sample letter for elected and appointed officials.
Take Action

As always, thank you for your support, and your sense of urgency in protecting our night sky.
Want to do even more?  Join International Dark-Sky Association Now