SALT LAKE CITY — Wednesday, the Bureau of Land Management announced new appointments or re-appointments of members to Utah’s citizen-based Resource Advisory Council, which advises the BLM on public land issues. The council is composed of members with diverse interests and backgrounds who serve three-year terms.
“Our Resource Advisory Councils exemplify the BLM’s collaborative approach to public land management,” BLM Director Neil Kornze said. “I want to welcome our newly appointed RAC members and thank them for their commitment to public service.”
Resource Advisory Council members are chosen for their expertise in natural resource issues, according to a press release from the BLM. Members help the BLM carry out its nationwide stewardship of 245 million acres – the largest land portfolio federal agency. The BLM has 28 Resource Advisory Councils across the West, where most BLM-managed land is located.
Listed among council appointees is Washington County resident Cimarron Chacon, appointed to the Resource Advisory Council for the division of Public-at-Large. Chacon’s experience stems from previous work as a former BLM landscape architect, urban planner and outdoor recreation business owner.
Southern Utah does not have any subsurface minerals, Chacon said, so the state’s assertion that taking federal lands would economically benefit Southern Utah is unbelievable.
“Washington County and our local outdoor industry businesses rely on public land to draw tourism, whether it’s for the beautiful backdrops or the many developed recreation trails,” Chacon said. “One of my main focuses will be to bring a balance between recreation and transportation issues and preservation.”
Each Resource Advisory Council consists of 10 to 15 members who have an interest in public land management, such as ranchers, conservationists, outdoor recreationists, tribal officials, state and local government officials, scientists and others.
“RAC members come from different backgrounds and reflect a wide range of perspectives,” BLM Utah State Director Juan Palma said. “Their diversity results in a balanced outlook that the bureau needs as it carries out its multiple-use mission.”
The newly appointed or newly re-appointed members of the Utah Resource Advisory Council, serving three-year terms, are:
- Chad Baker, Energy/Minerals, Salt Lake City
- Callee Butcher, Energy/Minerals, Salt Lake City
- Jim Allison, Archaeology/History (reappointment), American Fork
- Cimarron Chacon, Public-at-Large, St. George
Information about upcoming Resource Advisory Council meetings will be announced as it becomes available.
For additional information pertaining to public lands, visit the BLM website.
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Dixie has no subsurface minerals?
I must have wasted about a quarter of my life as a miner in southern Utah.
No no no and no. This lady is absurd.
I want to see a real representative for the people not some whacko environmentalist from wherever the wind blew her in from.