Filter our content…
Trump exempts Arctic winter oil and gas drilling from environmental review
The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it will exempt winter oil and gas drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska from the environmental reviews normally required by the National Environmental Policy Act. The Interior department is using a categorical exclusion, which is supposed to be used for activities that have no significant impact on the environment. The […]
Read MoreInside Utah’s bid to become the country’s next nuclear hub
Aaron and Kate talk to Lexi Tuddenham, executive director of HEAL Utah, about Utah’s push to promote nuclear development and how it intersects with public lands. We also cover the Roadless Rule comment period results and a sketchy-sounding proposal to build over 450 nuclear reactors in Utah to power data centers on public lands. News […]
Read MoreAnalysis: 99.1 percent of public comments oppose Roadless Rule repeal
A new analysis by the Center for Western Priorities found that 99.1 percent of the 370,238 public comments posted on the U.S. Forest Service’s (USFS) proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule oppose the Trump administration’s plan. The comment period closed October 6. The 2001 Roadless Rule prohibits most road construction and commercial logging on […]
Read MoreSTATEMENT: New analysis finds 99.1 percent of public comments oppose repealing the Roadless Rule
DENVER—A new analysis by the Center for Western Priorities found that 99.1 percent of the 370,238 public comments posted on the U.S. Forest Service’s (USFS) proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule oppose the Trump administration’s plan. The comment period closed October 6. The 2001 Roadless Rule prohibits most road construction and commercial […]
Read MoreAbandoned mines ‘a constant problem’ across the West
An investigation by ABC News has shed new light on the problem of abandoned mines in the Western U.S. and across the country. The investigation compiled records from the Office of Surface Mine Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), part of the Department of the Interior, to create an interactive map of more than 230,000 documented abandoned mine sites. Many of […]
Read MoreArrests made as Border Patrol cuts down iconic tree to clear way for border wall
On Monday, contractors knocked down an iconic “grandmother” cottonwood tree on federal land in the San Rafael Valley near Lochiel, Arizona to clear the way for border wall construction. Armed Border Patrol agents cleared an encampment of about 50 people who had gathered to try to protect the cottonwood after three others had already been felled. All […]
Read MoreSupreme Court to open term with Colorado climate lawsuit
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will open its new term with a major climate lawsuit brought by Boulder, Colorado as its first case. In 2018, the city and county of Boulder sued ExxonMobil and Suncor, alleging that the companies misled the public about their climate impacts, in violation of Colorado state law. The Supreme Court […]
Read MoreChiricahua positioned to become Arizona’s newest national park
Arizona is one signature away from its fourth national park. The Senate passed a bill by unanimous consent Wednesday to redesignate Chiricahua National Monument as a national park and sent it to President Trump’s desk. The bill was sponsored by U.S. Representative Juan Ciscomani and U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego. It leaves the […]
Read MoreSTATEMENT: New map shows 1,492 national park projects put on a “low priority” list
DENVER—Earlier this year, National Park Service headquarters in Washington shifted about 1,500 projects, many already approved, to a new “low priority” list, the Associated Press reported in August. The projects span more than 200 sites and carry a combined cost estimate of more than $400 million. Park Service employees “were told to not expect anything on the […]
Read MoreNuclear startup plans hundreds of reactors on Utah public land
Valar Atomics, a nuclear startup, is planning to place 456 small nuclear reactors on more than 9,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management land near Price, Utah, according to documents reviewed by NPR. The company calls the proposal “Project Beehive.” In addition to the reactors, the site would include data centers, a facility to make […]
Read MoreArizona tour company sues Trump admin over nonresident park fees
An Arizona tour company is suing the Trump administration over higher national park fees for people who don’t live in the United States, arguing the policy goes beyond the administration’s legal authority. Under the Trump administration’s policy, nonresidents are charged an additional $100 per person at some of the nation’s most-visited national parks, and nonresident […]
Read MoreBurgum considers building MLB ballpark in Grand Teton National Park
The Trump administration has scouted sites inside Grand Teton National Park to build a Major League Baseball field, the Washington Post reported Saturday, after MLB asked about staging a regular-season game in a national park. National Park Service Deputy Director Frank Lands toured three potential locations, including one the Post described as “already disturbed land.” WyoFile, […]
Read MoreSTATEMENT: The National Park Service’s hare-brained plan to put a MLB ballpark in Grand Teton National Park
We can’t afford to let Grand Teton become Doug Burgum’s single-use sandlot.
Read MoreDeveloper withdraws proposal for data center & natural gas plant on BLM land
The company proposing a data center and natural gas plant on federal land near Henderson, Nevada has withdrawn its proposal. The 1,000-megawatt data center could have been one of the state’s most energy-intensive, using enough energy to power between 700,000 and 1 million homes, according to NV Energy. In a statement, the developer said it consulted with the […]
Read MoreCommenters overwhelmingly reject Forest Service travel rule rewrite
Ninety-nine percent of public comments on the Trump administration’s plan to rewrite the Forest Service’s Travel Management Rule oppose the change, according to a new analysis from the Center for Western Priorities. Of the 134,312 comments submitted before the comment period closed on Wednesday, just 0.4 percent supported the revision, and nearly a third of […]
Read MoreSTATEMENT: New analysis finds 99.0 percent of public comments oppose Travel Management Rule rewrite
DENVER—A new analysis by the Center for Western Priorities found that 99.0 percent of the 134,312 public comments posted on the U.S. Forest Service’s (USFS) proposed revision of the Travel Management Rule oppose the Trump administration’s plan. The 30-day comment period closed September 23. USFS manages more than 380,000 miles of roads and 165,000 miles […]
Read MoreData center proposals on Western public lands face growing scrutiny
Concern about data centers on public lands is building in the West as the Trump administration weighs at least 12 proposals covering more than 17,600 acres across six states. Earlier this week, members of Arizona’s congressional delegation demanded answers from the Bureau of Land Management about four data center proposals covering roughly 3,000 acres of […]
Read MoreTrump hands Burgum a new way to bypass public lands protections
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order making changes to how presidential authority under the Defense Production Act (DPA) is delegated. Previously, the president delegated a variety of authorities under the DPA to the Secretary of Energy. Trump’s executive order amends the delegation of some authorities to include both the Secretary of […]
Read MoreSTATEMENT: Pitkin County votes to approve special use permit for operations of Maroon Bells Scenic Area
DENVER — Pitkin County commissioners voted unanimously today, September 23, to approve a special use permit for the county to take over daily operations of the Maroon Bells Scenic Area from the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) starting in 2027. The permit, which does not specify how many acres of public land the county would manage, […]
Read MoreNew map tracks $25.9 million in NPS projects blocked by Trump administration
The Interior department is blocking 133 National Park Service agreements with outside partners, holding up $25.9 million in funding for parks. These blocked agreements are available to view in a new interactive map from the Center for Western Priorities. Each agreement on the map lists the park or office that requested it, the partner that […]
Read MorePage 1 of 125