Utah · Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Shay Canyon
BLM found a wildlife resource and a cultural value here, and its plan calls for special management. BLM's records place no claim, lease or right of way inside the line today, and two grazing allotments cover part of it. It covers 119 acres and was designated October 31, 2008, in the Bears Ears National Monument Resource Management Plan.
One of the 1,120 places the Bureau of Land Management has designated an Area of Critical Environmental Concern. This page shows its line, what BLM found there and what sits inside it.
The line
Ground: USGS The National Map, topographic tiles. Boundaries: BLM's own, read Oct 20, 2026. The 2 grazing allotments below aren't marked.Grazing allotments
2 grazing allotments cover part of this line. Their permittees aren't named here yet.
- Indian Creek273,010acres
- Harts Draw33,495acres
The nearest areas
- Lavender MesaUtah · 649 acres · a grazing allotment covering part of it7miles
- Indian CreekUtah · 3,936 acres · 2 grazing allotments covering part of it20miles
- Alkali RidgeUtah · 39,197 acres · at least 2 mining claims BLM lists as Filed, 14 oil and gas leases, 21 rights of way, 7 grazing allotments covering part of it31miles
- Behind the RocksUtah · 4,811 acres · 7 rights of way, 2 grazing allotments covering part of it34miles
- Aquifer RechargeUtah · 85,856 acres · at least 19 active mining claims and 10 more BLM lists as Filed, 13 rights of way, 9 grazing allotments covering part of it36miles
More from BLM's Utah office
Every area BLM's Utah office holdsThe proposed rule
A proposed rule, RIN 1004-AF53, would change how BLM drafts every land use plan, and how it designates ACECs like Shay Canyon. The comment window hasn't opened: the proposed rule wasn't in the Federal Register at our last check. The Watch sends one email the day it prints.
The rule's abstract
The purpose of this rulemaking is to establish in regulations an updated process for the approval of the development, revision, amendment, and maintenance of land use plans, as provided for by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, for public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Additionally, this rulemaking will provide clarification of the process the BLM uses for designating Areas of Critical Environmental Concern.Unified Agenda entry for RIN 1004-AF53, Publication ID 2026, reginfo.gov (OMB OIRA), read Oct 18, 2026