Filter our content…
Statement on Biden administration protections for National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska
“We applaud the Biden administration’s unwavering commitment to conserving 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030.”
Read More$28 million directed to conservation projects across the West
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced Tuesday that it will use $28 million in funds from the Inflation Reduction Act to conserve public lands in the West by implementing six large-scale projects that will protect wildlife habitat, clean water, and recreation for future generations.
Read MoreMontana’s Badger-Two Medicine is permanently lease-free
Last Friday, conservation groups, leaders of the Blackfeet Nation, and the federal government reached an agreement with oil and gas company Solenex, LLC to permanently retire the last remaining federal oil and gas lease within the Badger-Two Medicine.
Read MoreStatement on Bureau of Land Management’s Blueprint for 21st Century Outdoor Recreation
The BLM is proactively responding to the increasing popularity of outdoor recreation on BLM-managed public lands DENVER—The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has released its Blueprint for 21st Century Outdoor Recreation to chart a course for the agency’s significant and expanding role as a provider of outdoor recreation opportunities.; The Blueprint is intended to guide the BLM’s […]
Read MorePermian Basin oil and gas activity is increasing geological hazards
A new report has found that oil and gas activity in the Permian Basin is deforming the landscape and increasing the risks to infrastructure. Using satellite data and remote sensing, the researchers found ground subsidence of an average of 3-4 centimeters per year across the Permian Basin, with some areas experiencing more dramatic subsidence and still other areas where the […]
Read MoreEPA slashes protections for wetlands to comply with Supreme Court ruling
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army have proposed a new definition of “waters of the United States” in order to comply with the Supreme Court’s ruling in Sackett v. EPA. In the May 2023 ruling, the Supreme Court held that in order to fall under federal oversight, a wetland must have a […]
Read MoreEPA slams ‘lax’ air quality permit for proposed Idaho gold mine
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has sent a letter and accompanying document to the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality criticizing an air quality permit issued to the proposed Stibnite gold mine. In the letter, EPA Region 10 Administrator Casey Sixkiller writes that the EPA “continues to be concerned that construction and operation of the Stibnite Gold Project under […]
Read MoreDigging into our 2023 Winning the West poll results
Kate and Aaron are joined by pollster Lindsay Vermeyen, senior vice president at Benenson Strategy Group, and Center for Western Priorities Executive Director Jennifer Rokala to dig into the results of our 2023 Winning the West poll. Spoiler alert: Western voters really love public lands, and they want to see them protected. Kate and Aaron […]
Read MoreAugust was a great month for public lands
From a new national monument designation to some major legal decisions upholding climate action and conservation, August brought a deluge of good news It’s been a great month for public land conservation in the West. From a new national monument designation to some major legal decisions upholding climate action and conservation, August brought a deluge […]
Read MoreGianforte continues to fight conservation funding for Montana
Last week, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte asked a district court judge to dismiss a lawsuit, filed in June, that challenges his veto of a bill that would have directed recreational marijuana tax revenues to conservation. The lawsuit, filed by Wild Montana, the Montana Wildlife Federation, and the Montana Association of Counties, argues that Gianforte intentionally used “procedural […]
Read MoreWhite House proposes new marine sanctuary off California coast
On August 24, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a proposal to designate a 5,617-square-mile area offshore of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties in central California as Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. The announcement follows a long advocacy campaign by the Northern Chumash people, who have been protecting and caring for California’s Central Coast since before […]
Read MoreNational parks drove record spending last year
A new report from the National Park Service found that visitor spending in communities near national parks in 2022 resulted in a record $50.3 billion economic benefit to the nation’s economy and supported 378,400 jobs. Annual appropriations for the National Park Service totaled $3.3 billion in fiscal year 2022, effectively turning a $1 investment in the national park system into a more than $10 boost […]
Read MoreBLM designates 120,000-acre conservation area in Idaho
Over 120,000 acres of rolling grasslands in southwest Idaho will be better conserved thanks to a new Bureau of Land Management Backcountry Conservation Area (BCA). The region is home to upland game bird species and serves as elk and mule deer habitat. “The Bennett Hills are a bird hunting destination and an essential winter area for the […]
Read MoreHow urban parks improve public health
Aaron and Kate are joined by I Ling Thompson, vice president of strategy and engagement at the Trust for Public Land, to discuss a new report from the Trust called the Power of Parks to Promote Health. The report looks at the myriad ways urban parks improve human and environmental health, as well as how […]
Read MoreBLM whistleblower says illegal grazing is harming Rio Grande River
A veteran Bureau of Land Management employee in the San Luis Valley has filed a whistleblower complaint, claiming illegal grazing is harming the Rio Grande River. Melissa Shawcroft, who has been a BLM rangeland management specialist since 1992, told the Denver Post the illegal grazing has gone on for years on the nearly 250,000 acres she manages in Colorado. […]
Read MoreUinta Basin Railway on hold for now
The U.S. Court of Appeals on Friday dealt a major blow to a plan to direct billions of gallons of crude oil from Utah through Colorado by rail. The proposed Uinta Basin Railway would connect oil fields in Utah with the national rail network, directing billions of gallons of crude oil through Colorado. The railway was proposed by Utah’s Seven County […]
Read MoreBLM proposes new conservation areas in southwestern Wyoming
The Bureau of Land Management released a draft Regional Management Plan (RMP) for stewarding 3.6 million acres of public land in the Rock Springs region of southwest Wyoming, which includes popular recreation destinations, culturally significant sites, and important wildlife corridors. The proposed plan would update outdated management practices in order to better balance conservation, recreation, and oil and […]
Read MoreConservation is a winning election issue in the West
The latest “Winning the West” poll from the Center for Western Priorities shows that public lands conservation remains a winning election issue for Western voters in Arizona, Colorado, and Nevada. Overwhelming majorities say that national public lands, parks, and wildlife issues are not only important to them but that these issues will play an influential role in how […]
Read MoreConservation remains a winning election issue in the West, new poll finds
Voters say a candidate’s support of public land conservation is important to how they will vote.
Read MoreColorado River water cuts will ease in 2024, despite long-term challenges
The Bureau of Reclamation announced that it will lessen restrictions on Colorado River water use next year after an unusually wet winter boosted low water levels in Lake Powell and Lake Mead. The announcement was made on the same day the Bureau of Reclamation released its 24-month projections for the Colorado River Basin. These projections play a critical […]
Read MorePage 2 of 74