Arizona Congressman proposes abolishing two national monuments

In response to the news, Southwest Regional Director, Scott Miller, released the following quote: 

“This is an affront to the freedom of all Americans who rely on these landscapes for cultural, recreational, economic and health benefits. It will threaten critical habitat for wildlife and desecrate our treasured natural places, and flies in the face of the massive broad Tribal and local support for these places.”

Ironwood Forest, designated as a national monument with strong community support 25 years ago, spans 129,000 acres in the Sonoran Desert and holds one of the region's richest stands of ironwood trees. The monument has significant 5,000-year-old cultural and historical sites, including three areas listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the Los Robles Archeological District, the Mission of Santa Ana del Chiquiburitac, and the Cocoraque Butte Archeological District.

The Tucson city council passed a resolution in support of Ironwood Forest National Monument just last week.

Baaj Nwaavjo was designated in 2023, led by the Grand Canyon Tribal Coalition and was in response to decades of calls from Tribes to protect ancestral lands and the Colorado River from uranium mining and other threats. The national monument preserves the region’s land, water, and air while allowing activities like hiking, hunting, and grazing.

A leaked memo from the Interior Department earlier this year identified both national monuments as on the Trump administration’s chopping block for a potential roll-back of protections.

In the 2025 State of the Rockies Conservation in the West Poll, 89 percent of Western voters — spanning the political spectrum — think existing national monument designations should be kept in place rather than removed.

Grand Canyon National Park and the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni National Monument are beloved by Arizonans. A staggering 80 percent of Arizona voters support Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Grand Canyon national monument, including 68 percent of Republicans, 81 percent of Independents, and 91 percent of Democrats.

The Wilderness Society stands prepared to defend against these attacks by upholding the freedom to access public lands, conserving the cultural and ecological values they safeguard, and ensuring that future generations inherit landscapes worthy of their history and traditions.