Senators plan bipartisan wildfire management bill: “Two senators who've seen widespread damage from wildfires in their states said they'll introduce bipartisan legislation later this year to speed forest-thinning and salvaging of fire-damaged timber in national forests. Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) are crafting a bill that would quickly remove dead and dying trees and speed reforestation projects in areas affected by wildfire, they announced. Daines and Feinstein have worked together for a few years on forest legislation, trying to bridge differences between Democrats and Republicans on environmental policies related to forest management. A forest industry source said it's likely that the legislation — a draft of which hasn't been released — will seek modest changes in the National Environmental Policy Act but won't delve into other legal issues such as alternatives to NEPA lawsuits when projects are in dispute. Changes to NEPA could make some kinds of projects related to wildfire happen faster, and on a larger scale. Lawmakers from both parties have shown a willingness to accept categorical exclusions from NEPA, for instance, for specific purposes like post-fire salvage operations or removing dead or dying trees that might pose a fire risk. Democrats have resisted bigger, broader categorical exclusions, however. And they've shown little appetite for alternatives to NEPA lawsuits, such as arbitration, when forest management projects are challenged — a top priority for Daines.”

[E&E News, 8/2/19] http://bit.ly/2Zv2tpU

Time to speak up for national forests, or see ‘radical turn toward secrecy’ on logging: “You’ve probably never heard of a “Categorical Exclusion.” You may have heard of the National Environmental Policy Act, also known as “NEPA,” the bedrock environmental law signed by President Richard Nixon in 1970. It would make sense if you hadn’t. But I’d wager that you know a thing or two about the Daniel Boone National Forest, or places like the Red River Gorge, Vanhook Falls, or Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. If you do, and if you care about these places – or any of the 193 million acres of national forest lands across our United States – then now is a good time to get familiar with some of these obscure terms. Here’s why: The U.S. Forest Service, under President Trump’s Department of Agriculture, has proposed major revisions to the agency’s rules for following NEPA. The proposed changes would end longstanding requirements that the Forest Service notify the public, allow for public comment, and analyze environmental impacts when approving logging, road building, pipeline construction, and a host of other activities across the U.S. National Forest system, including Kentucky’s Daniel Boone National Forest and Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. This is a radical turn toward secrecy that benefits industry at the expense of the public.”

[Lexington Herald Leader, 8/2/19] http://bit.ly/336Pfld

Judge: It's too soon to rule on coal NEPA review: “A federal judge said he would not toss the Trump administration's decision to restart federal coal leasing until the Bureau of Land Management has the chance to complete its environmental review. At the start of President Trump's term, then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke unwound an Obama-era plan to stop selling federal coal and halted BLM's work on a sweeping analysis of the leasing program. Judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana said in April that Trump's Interior Department could not reinstate leasing without first conducting a National Environmental Policy Act review. This week, he declined a request by environmental groups to scrap the Zinke order before that analysis is finished. Scrapping the order would have required BLM to halt new leasing. "The Court's postponement of a remedies ruling does not foreclose Plaintiffs' ability to challenge the NEPA process after the completion of Federal Defendants' review," Morris, an Obama appointee, wrote in a Wednesday order. Citizens for Clean Energy and other challengers in the case told the judge a "rushed" 35-page draft environmental assessment BLM released in the wake of Morris' April ruling did little to soothe their concerns.”

[E&E News, 8/1/19] http://bit.ly/333fUiN

Environmental groups sue BLM for reopening badlands near Factory Butte to off-roaders: “Three environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the federal Bureau of Land Management, arguing the group reopened land to unfettered motorized use without investigating the potential environmental impacts. The groups — the Natural Resources Defense Council, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (or SUWA) and The Wilderness Society — say cross-country off-roading in the area will cause soil erosion, worsen air and water quality and could hurt an endangered species of cactus that grows in the area, according to the lawsuit, which was filed Thursday in Utah’s U.S. District Court. BLM reopened 5,300 acres around Factory Butte in Wayne County, east of Capitol Reef National Park, on May 20, just before Memorial Day. The land around the signature rock formation had been closed to cross-country off-road traffic since 2006, after a petition from SUWA to protect the cacti and soil. In a news release about the reopening, BLM said it had been monitoring and installing infrastructure for a decade to protect the endangered cactus species, known as Wright fishhook cactus, so they can “enhance recreational access at Factory Butte,” adding the group had met “all of the necessary criteria” to reopen to off-roaders. According to the National Environmental Policy Act, a government agency undertaking a major federal action that affects the environment must conduct some kind of testing to assess the likely impacts of whatever project they undertake. The group’s allege BLM didn’t do such testing before reopening thousands of acres near Factory Butte to off-roading.”

[Salt Lake City Tribune, 8/2/19] http://bit.ly/2GEHzgj

Report: Obama Center Will Have ‘Adverse Effect’ on Jackson Park: “City, state and federal approvals are now underway for the Obama Presidential Center, or OPC. That comes three years after the Obamas selected Jackson Park as the site for the project. This week, a federal review found that construction of the OPC would have an “adverse effect” on Jackson Park and the Midway Plaisance. The Federal Highway Administration conducted the report. Two reviews are pending for the OPC. One review falls under the scope of the National Historic Preservation Act (Section 106). It examines the impact on historic properties, and the other is under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which is looking at the effects on the environment. Jackson Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Adverse effects can be direct or indirect and “include impacts such as physical damage, changes to the character of properties use or introduction of incompatible visual, atmospheric, or audible elements,” according to the Chicago Department of Planning and Development. When asked Tuesday whether she would force the Obama Foundation to make changes it’s been reluctant to make, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said, “I don’t think I should force anybody to do anything, but I will strongly weigh in about the need to engage community members about the remaining issues that they’re concerned about.” At least 30 other buildings in the surrounding area of the OPC would not be impacted by the center’s development, according to the report.”

[WTTW Chicago, 8/2/19] http://bit.ly/2yw8aaW

U.S. Sugar files lawsuit against U.S. Army Corps over Lake O discharges: “U.S. Sugar announced a lawsuit Thursday morning against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, arguing recent releases from Lake Okeechobee violate the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). At issue is the 2008 Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule (LORS), which the Army Corps uses to dictate the water levels of the lake. Under LORS, water levels are typically held between 12.5 and 15.5 feet. But the lawsuit by U.S. Sugar alleges that water levels are being kept below that range without a concomitant Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to determine the effects of doing so. “Despite this, and contrary to the 2008 Regulation Schedule, the Corps since November 2018 has been releasing unprecedented amounts of water from the Lake, driving the Lake to extreme low levels and man-made drought,” the lawsuit alleges. But keeping the lake too low can also create issues. Farmers rely on the lake as a water source, as do several local municipalities, such as West Palm Beach, that utilize water from Lake Okeechobee. Those low levels can also affect the lake’s marine life. Those concerns have triggered a separate lawsuit from the Center for Biological Diversity, Calusa Waterkeeper and Waterkeeper Alliance, a trio of environmental organizations.”

[Florida Politics, 8/2/19] http://bit.ly/31aG3uo

Justin McCarthy

Communications Director, NEPA Campaign

The Partnership Project
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E: jmccarthy@partnershipproject.org

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The Partnership Project, a registered 501 (c) (3) non-profit, is a collaborative effort of over 20 of the country’s most influential advocacy organizations, including Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife, League of Conservation Voters, Earthjustice, and Natural Resources Defense Council.