Josh Ewing | Friends of Cedar Mesa Crews drill an oil well on Cedar Mesa in 2014 on public land that later became part of Bears Ears National Monument. The well turned up dry and the federal lease was retired. But a review of BLM documents indicates industry has "nominated" numerous parcels in the area around Bears Ears Buttes, pictured in the distance, for oil and gas development despite claims by Utah officials that Cedar Mesa is under no threat of energy development.