Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke toured the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument in southern Oregon Saturday. He’s gathering information as part of President Trump’s order to review monuments designated by previous administrations.
Zinke hiked trails and held closed-door meetings with stakeholder groups, including ranchers and snowmobilers. At a mid-afternoon press conference, Zinke said it’s important to him to make sure everyone’s voice is heard.
“That means the ranchers today, what are their concerns?" he asked. "What are the timber guys, what are their concerns? Can you do timber harvest and protect biodiversity? What does the science say?”
President Bill Clinton established the Cascade-Siskiyou monument in 2000. In January, President Barack Obama expanded it to about 113,000 acres.
The expansion was recommended by a science panel that said the monument needed to be bigger to protect the unique biodiversity of the area.
Zinke is reviewing 27 monuments established or expanded since 1996. He’s expected to make recommendations to President Trump by the end of August.