Mr. Spiff Goes To Washington

Utah is probably best known for its conservative politics and religion – but its outdoors are pretty notable, too.

One of the films nominated at the Oscars last weekend for Best Picture, “127 Hours,” is set in Blue John Canyon, just north of Canyonlands National Park. If you haven’t seen “127 Hours,” perhaps you’ve seen “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” – the edge of the world is really Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats.

Best of all, the western state has even made its way into Calvin & Hobbes, one of the greatest comic strips of all time. Artist Bill Watterson has credited southern Utah as the inspiration for the legendary “Spaceman Spiff” landscapes.

Despite the fact that Spiff’s southern Utah is home to five spectacular National Parks, barely any of the state is protected as Wilderness by the Bureau of Land Management. You can help change that by signing the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance's Change.org petition to pass America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act (ARRWA).

This bill would classify over 9 million acres as Wilderness, the highest-protection the federal government can give to public lands – no loggers, no miners, no all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), no roads, no nothing. From spectacular canyons to just-plain-freaky rocks, these Colorado Plateau lands include some of the most unique land formations in the country – I would describe them, but you’d be better off just checking out these awesome pictures. (My own favorites are the Cedar Mesa Ruins, Fisher Towers, and San Rafael Reef.)

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) is leading the Red Rocks charge, but they’re not alone in this mission. More than 200 groups belong to the Utah Wilderness Coalition – from local groups like SUWA and the Utah Rivers Council to national groups such as Earthjustice, the Wilderness Society, and the Sierra Club.

These conservation organizations aren’t asking too much: Lands as distinctive and rare as southern Utah’s mesas, escalantes, and arches deserve protection from mining and ATV use.

SUWA’s petition here at Change.org asks Congress to pass ARRWA, granting permanent protection to these lands, perhaps the most unique in the country. If you think signing Congressional petitions is a waste of your time, think again – SUWA’s most recent email newsletter celebrates two other activist-driven Congressional victories. In the first, Rep. Rob Bishop (R-UT) withdrew his amendment to defund the National Landscape Conservation System. And in the second, a bill to block presidential use of the historic Antiquities Act was defeated in the House, 213-209. A few months ago, the group as part of a large coalition of conservation groups scored a huge victory when the Obama administration repealed former President Bush's 'No More Wilderness' policy.

SUWA clearly knows how to make a difference in Washington. Join them by signing their Change.org petition to protect the Red Rocks Wilderness.

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Photo Credit: Southeastern Utah's Fisher Towers, viewed from the west at sundown, courtesy Wikipedia.