National

Senate resolution aims to conserve 30% of US land and water by 2030. “Exactly what areas could count as protected, and how the protections would be enacted, is still up for debate – the Senate resolution focuses on the priority of the goal rather than concrete steps. The not-for-profit Center for Western Priorities lists a number of possible “pathways to protection” that include private conservation, indigenous land management efforts, and renewable energy partnerships.” [Guardian, 10/22/20 (+)]

The Oil Lobby’s COVID-19 Wish List. “The corporate watchdog group Documented obtained API’s March 25 wish list for the Interior Department through a public records request and shared it exclusively with HuffPost. The letter to Bernhardt from API policy executive Frank Macchiarola includes a four-page attachment with numerous requests for the Interior bureaus that permit and manage oil and gas development, including the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement.” [HuffPost, 10/22/20 (+)]

Harvard Law offers map for a Biden Interior overhaul. “A Harvard Law School environmental initiative has released a comprehensive road map to guide a potential Biden administration overhaul at the Interior Department, including calls for reversing a Trump-era reorganization and empowering career employees.Combining myriad policy recommendations with sharp if familiar critiques of the Trump administration's alleged shortcomings, the new Harvard Law School Environmental & Energy Law Program study illuminates dozens of green new routes Democrats might take.” [E&E News, 10/21/20 (=)]

Democrats seek to block appeal of court ruling ousting Pendley, BLM land plans. “A new bill from Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and other lawmakers would bar the Trump administration from seeking to overturn the ruling ousting William Perry Pendley from his role as the de facto director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The legislation comes as the Department of the Interior has expressed interest in appealing the decision from U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris that determined Pendley had "served unlawfully ... for 424 days" and tossed major land management plans he oversaw in Montana.” [The Hill, 10/21/20 (=)]

Ex-Interior official violated Trump ethics pledge by meeting with former associates: watchdog.“Aaron Weiss, deputy director of the Center for Western Priorities, a public lands watchdog group, said Wynn erred in not seeking the advice in writing, adding that this is “not an isolated case.” “This is part of a pattern of ethical conflicts that stretched from Wynn all the way up to [Interior Secretary David] Bernhardt,” he said. In Interior’s response to the report, the department wrote that “upon receiving accurate and comprehensive ethics guidance, there were no violations” beyond those identified in the report.” [The Hill, 10/21/20 (=)]

Could Biden Name an Indigenous Secretary of the Interior? Environmental Groups are Hoping He Will. “Although the November election is still weeks away, Democrats are already thinking about the makeup of the new administration they hope to see in 2021.Many environmental activists know that they've lost the battle when it comes to getting Biden fully on board with the Green New Deal and a fracking ban. But they say they hope to influence the selection of the White House's next top-ranking officials, to advance more aggressive climate policy.” [InsideClimateNews, 10/22/20 (+)]

Public lands and parks are our common heritage: Bruce Babbitt. “Bruce Babbitt, former governor of Arizona and Secretary of the Interior in the Clinton Administration, believes that environmental protection can again be a unifying issue for Americans. But to get there, advocates will need to rebuild consensus around issues that have wide support, like public lands and the benefits afforded by a healthy environment, and engage stakeholders who have often been ignored.” [Mongabay, 10/22/20 (+)]

Outdoor industry outlines agenda, lobbies for COVID-19 aid. “More people than ever are spending time outdoors during the coronavirus pandemic, but the outdoor recreation industry still needs more help from Congress to stay afloat. Members of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, a coalition of 33 national associations representing 110,000 businesses in the outdoors economy, say they need specific federal legislative relief to avoid more layoffs and closures.” [E&E News, 10/22/20 (=)]

Lawsuit: Feds ignoring oil spill risks to endangered species. “A decade after the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the federal government is still underestimating the risks of oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico to endangered species, according to a lawsuit filed yesterday. A coalition of environmental organizations — represented by Earthjustice — sued NOAA Fisheries over a programmatic analysis of oil and gas development in the Gulf over the coming decades.” [E&E News, 10/22/20 (=)]

State and Local

Private property blocks access to 174,000 acres in 4 states. “More than 174,000 acres of public land remains inaccessible to sportsmen and recreationists across a quartet of Southern states, according to an analysis released today. The data is the latest release from an ongoing review conducted by the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and the Montana-based land data company onX. Together they have tallied more than 16 million acres of local, state and federal public lands that remains unreachable to would-be users.” [E&E News, 10/21/20 (=)]

Tidal Basin could get a major face-lift. “Faced with a crumbling sea wall and daily flooding, the National Mall's Tidal Basin finds itself in an increasingly dire state of disrepair, with its famous cherry trees submerged in 3 feet of water during high tide. If current conditions persist, the situation likely will worsen, with the Thomas Jefferson Memorial projected to be under 4 feet of water by 2040.” [E&E News, 10/21/20 (=)]

Op-Ed, Editorial, and Analysis

Editorial: Trump’s arrogance now imperils some of his environmental decisions. “But Trump’s habit of appointing acting officials to sidestep Senate oversight may have finally met its Waterloo. Last month, U.S. District Judge Brian Morris in Montana ruled that the controversial appointment of William Perry Pendley as the acting director of the Bureau of Land Management — an agency that Pendley had fought against tooth and nail when he was an attorney for the oil industry and landowners — violated a federal statute and the Constitution. As a result, Morris ruled, Pendley could not continue in the position he had held for 15 months. The judge also ordered the government to prepare a list of actions taken by Pendley that, since he was in the position unconstitutionally, might be invalid.” [Los Angeles Times, 10/22/20 (+)]