Sierra Club is reporting that President Donald Trump is attempting to allow private real estate development within Yosemite National Park through a secret proposal. It said Trump wants to give a private equity development company access to a portion of the park, which was first protected by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864 for "public use, resort, and recreation." John Muir, who helped establish Yosemite National Park in 1890, later founded the Sierra Club to protect such irreplaceable outdoor landscapes. The organization is demanding that Congress oppose any land exchange or sale that would facilitate private development within Yosemite. It said that if part of Yosemite can be traded away, other national parks and protected landscapes, including Big Bend, Grand Staircase-Escalante and Bears Ears, could also become vulnerable to private interests. The Sierra Club emphasized that public lands are a shared legacy for all Americans and play a critical role in educating future generations.
