“When we’re taking a look, we have an executive order from President Trump to review these, to say ‘are they the appropriate size?’” Burgum told Semafor during a Friday event.
“We’ll go through a thorough review,” he said, adding, “this is not a top priority for the administration.”
His comments come after The Washington Post reported that department aides are considering shrinking at least six national monuments across Arizona, California, New Mexico and Utah: Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni-Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon, Ironwood Forest, Chuckwalla, Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante.
Burgum did not explicitly say which monuments were under review. But, his comments came in response to a question about whether the department was considering removing protections for six monuments, as reported by The Post.
A spokesperson for the Interior Department said the review is ongoing but declined to provide additional details.
Read more at TheHill.com.
