National

Trump administration pushes to sell Alaska oil leases pre-Biden inauguration. “The Trump Administration will take key steps to finalize a sale of oil drilling leases in the sensitive Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in Alaska just before Democrat Joseph Biden, who opposes drilling there, becomes president, a government spokeswoman said on Friday.” [Reuters, 11/13/20 (=)]

New Interior order undermines conservation bill Trump campaigned on, critics say. ““It’s a clear interference with private property rights and that the big irony here is that it's coming from the party claiming to support personal liberty and private property rights. They're trying to give every county commission and governor in the country veto power over private land owners who want to sell their land to the government at fair market rates,” said Aaron Weiss, deputy director of the Center for Western Priorities, a public lands watchdog group.” [The Hill, 11/13/20 (+)]

Lawmakers, advocates blast Bernhardt's LWCF order. “Jennifer Rokala, the executive director of the Center for Western Priorities, said it was "a blatant attack on private property rights." Many critics said Bernhardt had always been sympathetic to proponents of selling off public lands and that it was never his plan to implement the Great American Outdoors Act as the law intended.” [E&E News, 11/16/20 (=)]

Biden gives boost to retiring senator’s climate change plan. “A New Mexico Democrat, Udall is the last serving member of a political dynasty that has represented the West in Washington for nearly seven decades. He has urged a shift in land and ocean management away from world-beating oil and gas production to tackling climate change and preserving wilderness. His plan calls for conservation of 30% of the country’s lands and ocean waters in the next 10 years, setting aside millions of acres for recreation, wildlife and climate efforts by 2030. Biden has pledged to sign an executive order on his first day to support the plan, as part of Biden’s $2 trillion program to slow global warming.” [Associated Press, 11/13/20 (+)]

Biden’s Outdoor America: How Public Lands Could Change. “Biden has stated he will permanently protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge by banning drilling. He also plans to sign an executive order that will conserve 30% of U.S. lands and waters on the first day of his administration.” [GearJunkie, 11/13/20 (+)]

Senators mull trove of wildfire, land and wilderness bills. “A Colorado wilderness bill that became a political lightning rod in the state's U.S. Senate race this year will come up for a hearing this week — but it won't be the only controversial lands legislation on the table. Of the 13 measures the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests and Mining will take up Thursday, at least two others are likely to meet resistance from environmentalists.” [E&E News, 11/16/20 (=)]

Judge strikes down 'sloppy and rushed' BLM climate review. “A federal judge has again rejected the Bureau of Land Management's review of cumulative climate impacts of oil and gas leases in Wyoming, calling the analysis "sloppy and rushed." In a ruling late Friday afternoon, Judge Rudolph Contreras for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said BLM failed to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act in its supplemental analysis of the leases and must redo its work.” [E&E News, 11/16/20 (=)]

Why Trump's resistance means little to Biden agency teams. “President-elect Joe Biden this week announced a sweeping list of experts to make up his transition team at agencies like EPA and the Interior and Energy departments. But they have nowhere to go. Yet increased use of remote communications technology and remote work because of the coronavirus pandemic may be helping Biden's teams.” [E&E News, 11/13/20 (=)]

Trump races clock on remaining environmental rollbacks. “The Trump administration is scrambling to wrap up a slew of environmental rollbacks before President-elect Joe Biden takes office in less than 70 days. The administration has yet to get some of its most prized proposals across the finish line: finalizing the prep work to enable drilling in the Arctic and off the coasts; limiting protections for endangered species and migratory birds; and restricting what types of studies inform the government's policy choices.” [The Hill, 11/13/20 (=)]

Panel takes up ocean climate, drilling legislation. “The House Natural Resources Committee this week will take up Democratic legislation to ban new offshore drilling, among a list of other ocean-related bills. The panel will hear from witnesses tomorrow on the "Ocean-Based Climate Solutions Act," H.R. 8632, which would also authorize billions of dollars for coastal restoration and blue carbon ecosystems and aim to boost offshore renewables (E&E News PM, Oct. 20).” [E&E News, 11/16/20 (=)]

State and Local

U.S. Forest Service approves protection of Colorado’s Sweetwater Lake, but big questions remain. “A vague list he scripted last week distributing $900 million worth of Land and Water Conservation Fund money sent just $2.5 million to the BLM for land acquisition, and dismissed six projects that had been previously trumpeted by the Trump Administration during the summer’s cheerleading for the Great American Outdoors Act. “That is consistent with the disdain Bernhardt has had for the Land and Water Conservation Fund,” said Aaron Weiss, the deputy director for the Center for Western Priorities. “He tried to defund it for three years and now he’s throwing sand in the gears before he leaves. Really, these guys are just making it up as they go along right now because they know it doesn’t matter. They are going to be gone soon.”” [Colorado Sun, 11/16/20 (=)]