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By Natasha Lasky, ODP Staff Writer The Senate confirmed Tracy Stone-Manning to head the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) after months of attempts by conservatives to thwart her approval. While Republican leaders protested her confirmation because of her involvement with a tree-spiking incident in 1989, Stone-Manning was approved along party lines, 50-45. Why this […]
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Last week, a federal judge struck down a Trump administration action that abrogated an agreement under which no mining would occur in the habitat of the threatened greater sage grouse. While the judge’s decision doesn’t reinstate the Obama-era ban, the U.S. Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management must reevaluate the efficacy of mining in the region.
Why This Matters: In the midst of a global biodiversity crisis, the Audubon society reports that two-thirds of North American birds are at risk of extinction due to climate change.
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by Amy Lupica, ODP Contributing Writer On Friday, an order from the chief judge of the Montana federal court removed acting Bureau of Land Management director William Perry Pendley. Despite never being confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Pendley served as acting director for 424 days, a full 214 days past the original deadline to […]
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The Trump Administration announced that it intends to open millions of acres of national forest land for oil and gas drilling, and they will not evaluate whether the areas being opened will cause any environmental impacts, nor will they give the public advance notice, The Hill reports.
Why This Matters: The Trump team seems to be speeding up their desperate efforts to help fossil fuels as the first (and hopefully only) term nears an end. There is no economic or national security rationale for this.
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In a quiet decision in late May, the Trump Administration said it will open up California’s Carrizo Plain National Monument, which is known for its stunning wildflowers, to oil and gas drilling and a pipeline, the LA Times reported last week.
Why This Matters: This project is inconsistent with the purposes of the monument and will surely cause environmental harm.
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Earlier this week the Trump Administration took a break from its boosting oil and gas (they announced yesterday they are going to buy 1 million barrels of oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a “test”) to give final approval to the Gemini Solar Project – a massive $1B solar array and battery storage project situated on federal land near Las Vegas.
Why This Matters: The project went through a streamlined environmental review process, but the final development and operations plan will minimize and mitigate impacts on visual resources, cultural and tribal resources, recreation access, air quality, native vegetation and wildlife such as the desert tortoise, a “threatened” species.
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