White House

 

White House Revives Recreation Council To Boost Outdoor Access. According to E&E News, “The Biden administration today announced it is intensifying efforts to expand access to recreation on public lands, saying this would be part of the president’s aggressive conservation push. The White House will revive the Federal Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation (FICOR), which includes the Interior, Agriculture, Commerce and Defense departments. The council — first established in 2011 and then disbanded during the Trump administration — is tasked with creating ‘more safe, affordable, and equitable opportunities for Americans to get outdoors.’ The White House touted the group’s revival as part of its ‘America the Beautiful’ program, which aims to set aside 30 percent of the nation’s lands and waters in a natural state over the next decade. The concept of ‘30 by 30,’ as it is more broadly known, is typically touted as a way to address climate change and protect biodiversity. But the Biden administration version includes a third objective: creating equitable access to nature. That added variable has raised some question marks about how the Biden administration will tally its progress on its ‘America the Beautiful’ goals, as it has included actions such as funding synthetic turf at a city park and fee-free days for public lands as part of the program (Greenwire, Sept. 17, 2021).” [E&E News, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

The Federal Interagency Council On Outdoor Recreation Will Improve Your Access To Public Land. According to Outside, “The Biden Administration announced today, July 21, the reestablishment of the Federal Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation (FICOR). The move will make it easier for more people from more diverse backgrounds to recreate on federally managed public land, and will help the outdoor recreation industry continue to grow. Here’s how. ‘Federal agencies don’t have a built-in structure to prioritize recreation and then collaborate on the trends of record-breaking recreation interest and increased visitation, climate impacts on public lands and waters, decaying infrastructure, equitable access, new technologies, and more,’ says Jess Turner, President of the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable (ORR), who lobbied for the council’s return. ‘So, we pushed for a mechanism to ensure agencies address these issues as whole rather than piecemeal, and FICOR does just that. In short, FICOR will make the outdoors more accessible, equitable, and positive to more Americans while bolstering the national and local outdoor recreation economies.’ FICOR was first created in 2011 by the Obama administration. It was responsible for the creation of Recreation.gov, a website that allows you to book campgrounds, permits, passes, and tours on federal land, all on a single website. It also began tracking outdoor recreation as an economic sector, leading to the first analysis of that industry’s economic impact. And it established the Every Kid Outdoors Pass, which allows every fourth grader—and their families—free access to national parks and other federally managed outdoor areas. Those are three important, successful initiatives that have fundamentally altered the way Americans get outside. FICOR was suspended during the presidency of Donald Trump.” [Outside, 7/21/22 (+)]

 

Congress

 

Committee Deadlocks On Laura Daniel-Davis For Interior. According to E&E News, “The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee this morning delivered a tie vote on Laura Daniel-Davis for a prominent Interior Department position, with every Republican voting no. And even though Chair Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) supported Daniel-Davis, as expected, he reiterated his concern about the Biden administration’s oversight of the nation’s fossil fuel reserves. ‘I’m not pleased with the state of our leasing programs. I do believe that this direction is coming from, basically, the White House, and the blame should not fall on Ms. Daniel Davis, who is incredibly well-qualified,’ Manchin said. Committee ranking member John Barrasso stressed his own opposition to Daniel-Davis and the administration’s anti-oil policies, which the Wyoming Republican blamed for the nation’s high energy prices (E&E Daily, Feb. 9). ‘Her record is clear,’ Barrasso said. ‘She has enthusiastically implemented the Biden administration’s punishing energy policies.’ Republicans forced the administration to renominate Daniel Davis — who currently serves as principal deputy assistant Interior secretary for land and minerals management, and would become an assistant secretary — after the Senate failed to act last year. The GOP also insisted on a second confirmation hearing, and Manchin obliged (E&E Daily, Jan. 31). The West Virginia Democrat then put a pause on Daniel-Davis because of his own grievances with the administration (E&E Daily, May 24).” [E&E News, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Senate Energy Committee Deadlocks On Biden Interior Nominee In Heated Hearing. According to Politico, “Details: The deadlock outcome mirrored a committee vote last year on Laura Daniel-Davis’ nomination as Interior’s assistant secretary for lands and minerals management. This is the second go around for Daniel-Davis as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer did not bring her nomination up in the last congressional session. With the deadlock, Schumer will now have to file a discharge petition. That will require several additional hours of floor debate and a vote to formally begin considering her selection in the full Senate. Daniel-Davis worked at Interior multiple times over the past few decades, including as chief of staff for former Interior secretaries Ken Salazar and Sally Jewell in the Obama administration. Opening what at times became a heated hearing, Senate Energy Chair Joe Manchin said he was disappointed with the Biden administration’s lack of oil and gas lease sales, but added that he ultimately decided to vote to advance Daniel-Davis’ nomination. ‘While I’m not pleased with the state of our leasing programs, I believe the direction is coming from basically the White House and the blame should not fall on Mrs. Daniel-Davis, who is incredibly well-qualified for this role,’ Manchin said at the hearing.” [Politico, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Senate Panel Deadlocks On Biden Interior Nominee For Second Time. According to The Hill, “The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Thursday deadlocked 10-10 on a long-delayed vote for a key Interior Department official, setting the stage for a Senate-wide vote on the nomination. Laura Daniel-Davis, President Biden’s nominee for assistant secretary of the Interior for land and minerals management, already faced the panel in November, when it deadlocked on her nomination along party lines. President Biden renominated her in January, and committee Chairman Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) sparked umbrage in March by scheduling a rare, but not unprecedented, second hearing for Daniel-Davis at the request of ranking member John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). Barrasso has been a frequent critic of Daniel-Davis’s views on oil drilling and on Thursday accused her of ‘enthusiastically implement[ing] the Biden administration’s punishing energy policies.’ The Wyoming Republican also took aim at the Interior Department’s recently released draft five-year oil and gas leasing plan, which included an option for no new leases. Although Manchin voted for Daniel-Davis’s nomination with the rest of the panel’s Democrats, he also expressed displeasure with the current conditions of federal leasing programs while conceding ‘this is not her fault, and I believe that Ms. Daniel-Davis is incredibly qualified.’” [The Hill, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Senate Panel Deadlocks On Grand Canyon, Wilderness Bills. According to E&E News, “The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee deadlocked yesterday on bills meant to protect the Grand Canyon, create new wilderness areas in Montana and allow grazing permits to be returned to the government. S. 1493, the ‘Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act,’ from Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester, would create nearly 80,000 acres of wilderness. The plan has local and national support, including from the Wilderness Society. But while Montana Republican Steve Daines says he does not ‘have a problem’ with the bill, he wants to see the elimination of other wilderness areas in the state. Daines said that would create a ‘balance.’ Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) responded, ‘It seems to me unproductive to hold up a good bill hostage for an entirely separate issue we can deal with in this committee.’ With the Senate evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, a tie vote means the legislation doesn’t advance. However, the majority can call up a floor vote to advance the bill. Vice President Kamala Harris would have to break a tie for the move to succeed. The committee yesterday similarly deadlocked on Laura Daniel-Davis for assistant secretary of Interior for land and minerals management. Chair Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) voted for the nominee but joined Republicans in expressing concern about the department’s resource development plans (Greenwire, July 21).” [E&E News, 7/22/22 (=)]

 

Department of the Interior

 

Interior Finalizes Process For Coal Mine Cleanup Grants. According to E&E News, “The Biden administration today issued final guidance outlining steps that eligible states and the Navajo Nation communities should take to apply for the first $725 million in grant money authorized by the bipartisan infrastructure law to clean up abandoned coal mines. The final guidance document, developed over months in consultation with state government and Native American tribal leaders, labor and environmental groups and others, limits grant money to ‘eligible abandoned coal mine reclamation projects.’ The $725 million is the first portion of $11.3 billion in abandoned coal mine cleanup funds available over the next 15 years that was included in the bipartisan infrastructure law approved by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden last year. A draft guidance document was unveiled in May for public comment and review (E&E News PM, May 23). Today’s final outline document includes varying tiers of eligible projects ranked into three priority groups. Priority 1 and Priority 2 projects, for example, are listed as those deemed to ‘protect public health and safety from extreme effects’ or ‘adverse effects’ of coal mining practices of the past, respectively. Priority 3 projects are those that ‘restore land and water resources and the environment previously degraded by adverse effects of coal mining practices,’ according to the guidance.” [E&E News, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Feds Issue Guidance On Cleanup Plan For Abandoned Coal Mines. According to Associated Press, “The U.S. Department of the Interior on Thursday issued guidance for nearly $725 million in funding available this fiscal year for the reclamation of abandoned coal mines and cleanup of acid mine drainage. The guidance provides information about project eligibility, priorities and interpretation for the use of funding from President Joe Biden’s $1 trillion infrastructure package. It is part of an overall plan announced earlier this year to spend $11.3 billion in the U.S. abandoned mine lands program over 15 years. The guidance also clarifies how the grant funding differs from traditional fee-based grant distributions authorized by the 1977 Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. The funding is available to 22 states and the Navajo Nation. Among its provisions, the guidance encourages prioritizing projects that invest in disadvantaged communities, maximize the reduction of methane emissions, hire former coal industry workers and involve public comment and review.” [Associated Press, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

BOEM

 

Interior Department Advances Two Offshore Wind Projects In Gulf. According to Washington Examiner, “The Interior Department said Wednesday that it is advancing two offshore wind projects in the Gulf of Mexico, identifying an area of roughly 700,000 acres for possible development as the Biden administration looks for ways to expand its clean energy projects to fight climate change. President Joe Biden announced the efforts during a speech in Somerset, Massachusetts, on Wednesday, where he outlined a series of steps his administration is planning to take to meet his goals of cutting greenhouse gas emissions, including by switching to clean energy alternatives. ‘Today, we began the process to develop wind power in the Gulf of Mexico for the first time,’ Biden said in Somerset, describing the two proposed offshore projects as a ‘real opportunity’ to power millions of homes using clean energy. ‘Let’s clear the way for clean energy and connect these projects to the grid,’ Biden said, adding that he has directed his administration ‘to clear every federal hurdle and streamline federal permitting’ to bring these clean energy projects online ‘right now and right away.’ According to the Interior Department, the first draft wind energy area would be located off the coast of Galveston, Texas, and total more than 546,000 acres, while the second would be located off the coast of Lake Charles, Louisiana, and total more than 188,000 acres. Together, they would have the combined potential to power more than 3 million homes, according to a White House fact sheet. ‘The promise of renewable energy is undeniable, as is the momentum for a clean energy transition,’ Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement .” [Washington Examiner, 7/20/22 (=)]

 

FWS

 

Int'l Org Adds Monarch Butterfly To Endangered 'Red List'. According to E&E News, “An international organization today identified the migratory monarch butterfly as one of the world’s endangered species, in a message-sending move that the Fish and Wildlife Service still hopes it can avoid having to duplicate. Capping an extensive study, the Switzerland-based International Union for the Conservation of Nature said it is adding the monarch to the ‘red list’ of threatened and endangered species. ‘Today’s Red List update highlights the fragility of nature’s wonders, such as the unique spectacle of monarch butterflies migrating across thousands of kilometers,’ IUCN Director General Bruno Oberle said in a statement. With the addition, the monarch becomes one of 147,517 species on the list, of which 41,459 are considered to be threatened with extinction. The migratory monarch is a subspecies of the monarch butterfly and is renowned for its journeys from Mexico and California in the winter to summer breeding grounds throughout the United States and Canada (Greenwire, Dec. 23, 2015). Logging and deforestation in Mexico and California has cut habitat, while pesticide and herbicide use has killed milkweed, the plant that feeds the larvae of the butterfly.” [E&E News, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Reclamation

 

A Painful Deadline Nears As Colorado River Reservoirs Run Critically Low. According to The New York Times, “States in the Colorado River basin are scrambling to propose steep cuts in the water they’ll use from the river next year, in response to a call by the federal government for immediate, drastic efforts to keep the river’s main storage reservoirs from reaching critically low levels. … Water managers from the states, irrigation districts, Native tribes and others are discussing proposals for steep 2023 cuts, which must be submitted to the Bureau of Reclamation next month. The reductions are expected to fall most heavily on agriculture, which uses about three-quarters of Colorado water, and on the lower basin states. ‘The tough thing is we’ve had these incremental steps toward reducing water use on the river, a long runway for water users to adjust to the new normal,’ said Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Use Policy at Arizona State University. ‘And now we suddenly have this unprecedented demand to leave more water in the system.’ In calling for the cuts at a Senate hearing last month, Camille C. Touton, the commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation, warned that if negotiations failed, the government could act unilaterally. ‘We will protect the system,’ she said. ‘The challenges we are seeing today are unlike anything we have seen in our history,’ Ms. Touton said.” [The New York Times, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Department of Agriculture

 

USFS

 

Feds Near Decision On Ariz. Copper Mine At Sacred Site. According to E&E News, “The Forest Service appears to be nearing a decision on whether to use an environmental review issued under the Trump administration that would allow a large copper mine to be built on an Arizona site sacred to Apache tribes. Early in President Joe Biden’s tenure, the Forest Service rescinded the review for a land exchange that would have given Resolution Copper, a joint venture between mining companies Rio Tinto PLC and BHP Group Ltd., the right to construct a sprawling copper mining complex atop of Oak Flat, a site revered by members of the Apache Nation. The environmental analysis was released under the Trump administration, days before Biden’s inauguration. Publication of the review began a 60-day clock to complete the land exchange under a 2014 defense policy law. As outlined in the defense bill, the trade would involve 2,422 acres of federal land within the Tonto National Forest known as Oak Flat transferred to Resolution Copper, in exchange for conserving 5,344 acres in different areas of the state. The environmental review was rescinded to give additional scrutiny to previous ‘environmental, cultural, and archaeological analyses,’ and more time for tribal consultation, the Forest Service said (E&E News PM, March 1, 2021). More than a year later, the agency is inching slowly toward completing its additional talks with tribes and deciding whether it will stick with the Trump-era review or go back to the drawing board.” [E&E News, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

States

 

Colorado

 

As CORE Act Stalls, Supporters Continue To Hope The Colorado Land Legislation Will Become Law Someday. According to Colorado Public Radio, “Gunnison County Commissioner Jonathan Houck wishes he could have a cup of coffee with Alaska U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski to discuss the Colorado Outdoor and Recreation Economy Act. At a Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing on the bill in May, the Alaskan Republican said, ‘It might be thin gruel to tell the people of Colorado that we need to keep working on this.’ That was one of the more positive comments from a Republican during the hearing. Houck remembers listening to Republican Senators talk about ways to get more backing for the Colorado-focused legislation. ‘I’m sitting there thinking to myself, ‘Check, check, check, we’ve done that.’ He has been working on elements of the bill for more than 10 years. Houck says he would tell Murkowski and the others about the years of work that have gone into the four different sections of the bill, the changes that have been made, and the ‘thoughtful’ balance that proponents of the measure have struck to get a broad swath of support for the legislation. The CORE Act includes four measures — the Continental Divide Recreation, Wilderness, and Camp Hale Legacy Act; the San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act; the Thompson Divide Withdrawal and Protection Act; and the Curecanti National Recreation Area Boundary Establishment Act — that would protect over 400,000 acres in Colorado through new wilderness, recreation and conservation areas, and establish a new historic landscape designation for Camp Hale, where the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division trained during World War II.” [Colorado Public Radio, 7/22/22 (=)]

 

Oregon

 

OR Feds Step Up Against Cyanide Devices On Public Land. According to The Corvallis Advocate, “Oregon made a legislative hat-trick on Thursday with Rep. Peter DeFazio, and Sen. Ron Wyden and Sen. Jeff Merkeley bringing ‘Canyon’s Law’ to the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Floor respectively. The proposed law – named for Canyon Mansfield of Idaho boy whose dog accidentally activated an M-44 cyanide device on Bureau of Land Management land – is titled H.R. 4951 and would outlaw these devices, which are meant to kill wolves, on federal land. Mansfield watched his dog die, and he has had significant health issues related to his own exposure to the cyanide as well. ‘These cruel and deadly devices kill family pets and hundreds of unintended wildlife,’ said Rep. DeFazio to the committee. ’People have been injured as well and unless we ban these devices, it is only a matter of time before someone is killed. There are other proven, low-cost, and established ways to protect livestock.’ ‘Oregon’s 2019 decision to ban cyanide bombs should send a clear message to Congress. It’s time to do the right thing and ban M-44s before another child is poisoned or another dog is killed. A public lands ban of these horrific devices will go a long way towards that goal,’ said Brooks Fahy, Executive Director of the national wildlife advocacy group, Predator Defense, who has worked with M-44 victims for nearly 30 years.” [The Corvallis Advocate, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Washington

 

AP | WA Supreme Court Rules That Trust Lands Are To Fund Schools. According to The News Tribune, “The Washington state Supreme Court on Thursday ruled the Department of Natural Resources must manage state trust lands for the financial benefit of schools and other institutions, rejecting a claim by environmental groups that such lands should be managed to benefit all residents. In a unanimous decision the justices ruled against environmental groups who contended that DNR was too focused on logging state lands in order to generate revenue for school construction and other uses. The Supreme Court also ruled that DNR is obligated by law to manage forest lands for the benefit of counties who granted land to the state. The DNR policies provide ‘a benefit to the general population by boosting local economies as well as maintaining stronger and better-funded public systems of education and governance,’ the court ruled. ‘DNR’s discretionary land management strategies are neither unconstitutional nor arbitrary and capricious,’ the court said in affirming the trial court’s dismissal of the case.” [The News Tribune, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

WA Supreme Court Rules That State Can Log Public Lands, But Doesn’t Have To. According to Seattle Times, “Washington state is not constitutionally obligated to harvest forests or maximize revenue on state land, the Washington Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Thursday. For decades, the Department of Natural Resources harvested state forests to fund grade schools and universities based on an understanding of the state constitution, federal stipulations and legal precedent that land entrusted to the state must be used to maximize revenue and support public institutions. But the court said this week the state isn’t required to do either, a pivotal ruling that gives agency officials and lawmakers more discretion when interpreting the state constitution’s policy on managing state forests. While the court ruled in favor of the state, conservationists hailed the decision as a towering victory that paves the way for the state to maintain public forests in a way that takes greater account of endangered species, habitat loss, unemployment and climate change. ‘That’s what we were looking for, is that flexibility to now have a broader policy discussion of different ways to manage (Department of Natural Resources) lands,’ said Paula Swedeen, policy director of Conservation Northwest, an environmental advocacy organization.” [Seattle Times, 7/21/22 (=)]

 

Research & Analysis

 

Poll In Mountain West Swing States Shows Strong Support For Land Conservation. According to KUNM-Radio, “With the midterm elections coming up, a poll shows that Mountain West voters value public lands, and that interest may lead them to candidates supporting the environment. Benenson Strategy Group polled about 2,000 people across Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Arizona in May about public lands and the outdoors for the Center for Western Priorities. Deputy Director Aaron Weiss says before pollsters began conservation-focused questions they asked an open-ended one: What are your concerns as a voter in the West? ‘They immediately go to things like water shortages, wildfires, fire mitigation, drought and climate change,’ said Weiss. ‘We see that across the board politically.’ Those polled said politicians in Washington, D.C. don’t understand or don’t pay enough attention to these issues. Weiss adds that candidates vowing to protect public lands should consider swing voters ‘winnable.’ Beyond strong support for public lands, the center was curious about the impact of high gas prices. The poll shows Democrats support investing in renewable resources while Republicans would increase oil and gas development. But independents swing for renewable energy. ‘Westerners see clean energy as the solution to the current energy crisis and are frustrated with oil companies,’ according to a press release.” [KUNM-Radio, 7/21/22 (+)]

 

Good News Roundup For Thursday 7-21-22. According to Daily Kos, “the year started out bleak for some of the nation’s most important forest ecosystems. The outgoing Trump administration slashed federal protection for Alaska’s Tongass National Forest — the world’s largest intact temperate rainforest — and finalized a rule to stop protecting more than 3 million acres of the Pacific Northwest that’s home to the northern spotted owl, a threatened bird. Biden reversed these policies, and others, after taking office. ‘We’ve now had 12 months to get us back to where we were in 2016,’ said Aaron Weiss, deputy director at the Center for Western Priorities, a research and advocacy group. ‘I don’t know if you can call that progress as much as it is stopping the bleeding.’ But in January, Biden also announced that the US would aim for ‘30 by 30’ — a goal of conserving at least 30 percent of the nation’s land and water by 2030, which dozens of other countries have committed to. ‘We’ve never seen a president make that kind of big conservation promise right off the top,’ Weiss said. This year also ushered in major pledges and financing for trees. At the UN’s big November climate conference in Glasgow, more than 100 global leaders vowed to end deforestation by 2030 — a commitment that governments and private companies backed with $19 billion. In April, a number of countries, including the US and Norway, also launched a coalition that will pay countries that can show they’re preventing deforestation.” [Daily Kos, 7/21/22 (+)]

 

 

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