SALT LAKE CITY — When Republican Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt signed on to the largest land swap in U.S. history last week, he effectively muted intense opposition to what had been one of the most controversial federal land grabs.
Most elected leaders in Utah are singing praises for the new deal, and Congress is about to provide final approval, even though many of those same officials were once President Clinton’s most vocal critics.
On September 18, 1996 Clinton caught Utah by surprise when he signed an executive order turning 1.7 million acres of Utah land into the Grand Staircase of the Escalante National Monument. Utah’s elected leaders united in opposition and encouraged groups to file suit against the government to reverse the move. Clinton had not consulted with any Utah officials, and Leavitt was quick to condemn the action.
On May 8, Leavitt, without visible opposition, agreed to drop legal action against the federal government in exchange for $50 million and a swap of state and federal land in Utah. The swap does not compensate Utah for the loss of jobs, tax revenue, and support for Utah schools that some estimated to reach several billion dollars over time.
Clinton’s executive order locked up the largest reserve of high-quality coal and minerals in the continental U.S. Legal action by Utah schools was ended by the governor’s agreement, but the Utah Association of Counties still has a lawsuit pending.
The agreement exchanges all of Utah’s claims to lands within national parks, monuments, forests and federal areas for a total of 139,000 acres of land formerly held by the federal government. Utah also receives mineral rights for 160 million tons of coal, 185 billion cubic feet of coal bed methane gas, rights to some oil, gas, limestone, and tar sands, as well as a payment of $50 million.
The land given up by Utah contains the Kaiporowitz coal field, which is the largest, undeveloped mine in the United States. It has approximately 62 billion tons of low sulfur, clean burning, high compliance coal. It is one of the premier coal fields in the United States, perhaps the world, according to Dr. Lee Allison, Utah state geologist.
It is super compliance coal because it burns so cleanly that it beats the requirements of the Clean Air Act. A fact that should make environmentalists very happy. It also has a high BTU rating making it very powerful. The New York Times estimated the coal is worth over $1 trillion.
Ask the Tampa Electric Company where it has now contracted to get its high compliance,
environmentally friendly coal. The answer is a mine on the Indonesian island of Kalimantan. It is the only mine in the world currently producing this highest quality coal. The mine, the transportation terminal, and the shipping of the coal to power plants all over the world are all owned by companies owned in part by the Chinese, such as the Lippo Group, large contributors to the Clinton-Gore campaign, and PT Adaro.
Shortly after the executive order was signed, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, became one of the most outspoken critics of Clinton for the action. Reports appeared in the press of possible special favors being granted to China and Indonesia as well as the Lippo Group.
“If that’s true, then my gosh.” he said. “And if some of the other allegations are true, that these people were giving special favors to foreign lands for fund raising in a presidential campaign, I mean that would be, that would blow any president out of the White House.”
program. “I think you’re going to find great ties to the mainland Chinese, the People’s
Republic of China, and I think you’re going to find that they (China) represent them (Lippo) in some way,” Hatch predicted in 1996.
Clinton was very clear about his motivations for locking up the 40 acres of coal mine in the middle of 1.7 million acres of Utah desert. “I am concerned about a large coal mine proposed for the area. Mining jobs are good jobs and mining is important to our national economy and to our national security. But we can’t have mines everywhere and we shouldn’t have mines that threaten our national treasures,” said President Clinton after the event, held not at the new monument but in Arizona at the Grand Canyon.
“You do not need to create that monument to preserve the land,” said Garfield County Commissioner Louise Liston. “There’s almost 200 state and federal laws protecting it; thousands of federal regulations; law suits that dictate what happens on federal lands. You did not need to create this national monument to preserve that land.”
At the time of Clinton’s executive order, Garfield County officials said the effects on the people of Utah would be devastating. As many as 1,000 direct jobs are lost, plus a vast
number from support services that would have been attracted to the area. Additionally, the school trust lands on which the mine is located will never produce the much needed revenue that would have contributed to the state’s school children. They also pointed out that the nation suffers with the loss of billions in tax revenues, and a dependence on foreign resources.
The potential is now even greater that the U.S. might need to send troops to foreign countries to protect coal and oil, according to retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Richard Lawson.
“It would be terrible if the country with the most coal reserves on earth walked its way into a situation where we had to go around the world and protect our resources of coal,” he said. “It borders on being immoral.”
At the time of the signing, Clinton promised to trade the school trust land for other land in Utah. That’s what he has done with the agreement just signed by Leavitt. In 1996 Leavitt and other critics were quick to point out that such a swap was not possible because there is no land with mineral value sufficient to replace the land taken by
Clinton’s order.
Time apparently heals many wounds. Calls were made to all members of the Utah congressional delegation, who are all Republicans. Only Rep. Chris Cannon expressed continued concern, but did not have plans to pursue any action. Rep. James Hansen plans to file a bill in the House for final approval of the deal inked by Leavitt. He was not available for comment, and his office did not have a prepared statement available on the bill. The spokeswoman for the Utah Association of Counties would not comment on whether that organization intends to continue their lawsuit.
