Monday’s recommendations from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to revise the boundaries of the Bears Ears National Monument strike an important balance and align with the original intent of the Antiquities Act.

The recommendations deserve to be vetted on their merits.

In the great public lands debate of the West, Utah and the United States must find an equilibrium that embodies the vital principles of stewardship and conservation without neglecting the need for job creation, growth, recreation and other appropriate access.

The Bears Ears National Monument, as designated by President Barack Obama as he left office, did not strike that balance.

The president’s Bears Ears proclamation read in part: “Protection of the Bears Ears area will preserve its cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy and maintain its diverse array of natural and scientific resources, ensuring that the prehistoric, historic, and scientific values of this area remain for the benefit of all Americans.”

As the proclamation suggests, the monument designation certainly preserves the area's resources. And yet by restricting access, the monument unintentionally jeopardizes some of the important historic and cultural activities associated with the land’s history, especially tribal co-management.

Furthermore, the sweeping nature of the designation, which encompassed 1.3 million acres, does not stay true to the original intent of the Antiquities Act, which authorized presidents to designate national monuments “confined to the smallest area compatible with proper care and management of the objects.”

Apart from protecting antiquities, some have environmental concerns when it comes to potentially reducing the monument’s boundaries to the “smallest area compatible.” Other mechanisms are more properly suited to the task of environmental preservation rather than presidential proclamations aimed at designating a national monument under the Antiquities Act.

Undoubtedly many will read Secretary Zinke’s recommendations concerning Bears Ears as a political device deployed to win over Western conservatives and the Utah delegation. Putting politics aside, however, President Obama’s designation was fallible for a variety of reasons, and Secretary Zinke’s recommendations should be considered and vetted on their merits.

We advocated for compromise and a legislative solution to the debates surrounding preserving federal lands in the state of Utah while also permitting adequate land access. We have long pointed to the Washington County lands bill as a model. Led by Sen. Bob Bennett, the legislation brought together various parties and resulted in a compromise that protected wilderness, wildlife and endangered species, while also allowing for development in the expanding environs of St. George.

This time around, however, the so-called Public Lands Initiative, a similar kind of omnibus compromise that aimed for both robust public land protections and development opportunities, faltered in Congress. Eventually President Obama acted with his pen to designate the monument.

We hope balancing interests, negotiations and finding common ground will guide these ongoing debates. Given the current circumstances, Secretary Zinke's recommendations deserve serious consideration, regardless of politics.