October, in brief
What you may have missed and need to know
Photo by Nina Mayer Ritchie | @Interior
Key news from October:
- The House passed three bills to protect public lands in the West. The Chaco Culture Heritage Protection Act, the Grand Canyon Centennial Act, and the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Economy Act all passed with bipartisan support.
- A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to remove protections for the sage-grouse on millions of acres of public land across the West. The Obama-era plans were reinstated on 10.7 million acres of sage-grouse habitat.
- Interior Secretary David Bernhardt announced the Fish and Wildlife Service would move to weaken endangered species protections for California’s delta smelt. The change has long been sought by Westlands Water District — a policy specifically lobbied for by Bernhardt when he represented Westlands.
- The Interior Department backed down on its Freedom of Information Act policy, removing controversial language that allowed for political interference into information requests.
- William Perry Pendley, the acting head of the Bureau of Land Management, told a skeptical crowd of environmental journalists that his past actions and words are now “irrelevant” and that he has yet to be briefed on climate science. Earlier this month, Pendley’s tenure at Interior was extended by Secretary Bernhardt for an additional four months.
- In an interview with Bloomberg Environment, Pendley admitted that decisions under the National Environmental Policy Act should be made in Washington, DC, not locally. This undermines the administration’s previous rationale for dismantling BLM’s Washington headquarters, so employees could be closer to the lands they manage.
- The Forest Service announced it has completed a draft environmental review that would exempt Alaska’s Tongass National Forest from the roadless rule, which has protected intact forests since the Clinton administration.
- Following intense local and national pushback, the Interior Department reversed course on a plan to open a number of national parks to off-road vehicles.
- Federal land management agency employees were assaulted or threatened at least 360 times from 2013 to 2017. The Government Accountability Office released a report with the count.
What to watch for in November:
- To avoid a shutdown, the Senate will have to approve a budget with funding for the Interior Department, including funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
- The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a confirmation hearing for Katharine MacGregor, the nominee for Interior deputy secretary.
Best Reads of the Month
Despite promises from oil and gas companies, venting and flaring is on the rise during Trump administration
Americans would rather reduce oil and gas exploration than “drill, baby, drill”
Interior proposes new plan to make camping in national parks worse
Trump administration admits political appointees have violated ethics pledge multiple times
Oil and gas companies used loophole to avoid paying $18 billion in royalties in recent decades
From the Center for Western Priorities:
Winning the West 2020A new Winning the West 2020 poll by the Center for Western Priorities shows an “Outdoor Voting Bloc” in the Rocky Mountain West has cemented itself as an influential factor in election outcomes. The Winning the West poll and accompanying presentation — conducted for the third consecutive election cycle in Colorado, Montana, and Nevada, and for the second time in Arizona and New Mexico — reveal how issues involving public lands, parks, and wildlife play an outsized role in moving Western voters to the polls and influence how voters choose candidates.
Westwise Blog:
- Scoring the Trump Interior Department’s deregulatory hit list
Two years after releasing industry-backed report, the agency has rolled back dozens of land and wildlife protections - Every day is Public Lands Day in Montana, and other insights from our live podcast in Missoula
Highlights from CWP’s live podcast episode in Missoula, Montana - How the Interior Department silenced public advisory committees
Analysis shows that after political meddling most BLM Resource Advisory Councils are rife with vacancies and inactive - New poll shows influence of “Outdoor Voting Bloc” in Mountain West
Analysis reveals current administration actions on public lands, energy, and climate are unpopular among voters
Go West, Young Podcast:
Senator Tom Udall of New Mexico just introduced a bill to protect 30% of America’s land and water by 2030. We talk to him about that and his other plans before he leaves the Senate in 2021.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser sits down with Go West, Young Podcast to talk about how he chooses when to take the Trump administration’s environmental rollbacks to court, and when to stay on the sidelines.
In this episode of CWP’s Go West, Young Podcast, we sit down with John Freemuth, the endowed chair of the Cecil D. Andrus Center for Public Policy at Boise State University.
Quote of the month:
Many ecosystems and wildlife species are nearing the point of no return. Protecting and restoring 30 percent of our lands and waters by 2030, with more protected in the decades following, is a necessary step to stem the collapse of our natural systems.”
Picture this:
An analysis of the Bureau of Land Management website conducted by the Center for Western Priorities finds that 30 of the 37 Resource Advisory Councils have been reinstated by the Trump administration with politically-motivated mandates. The remaining seven RACs appear not to have renewed charters. Of the 30 Trump-chartered RACs, 17 have not met under their new charter. In sum, more than half of all RACs — 20 of 37 — have not met since 2017. | Center for Western Priorities
