Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s Spokeswoman Once Argued Muslims Can’t Be President. “A top spokeswoman for Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke made Islamophobic comments in a 2015 blog post, arguing that a Muslim ‘could never serve’ as president of the United States, HuffPost has learned. In the post, titled ‘Did I offend you?,’ Faith Vander Voort came to the defense of then-Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, who, less than two weeks earlier, said: ‘I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.’ ‘A devout Muslim,’ Vander Voort wrote in her post, ‘could never serve in the Oval Office of the United States of America, not because of exclusion or discrimination, but because their own religion strictly prohibits them from taking an oath to anything other than Allah.’” [HuffPost, 7/25/18 (+)]
Boost for industry as BLM shuns environmental offsets. “Energy companies will save money, regulators will lose leverage and some federal agencies will march to different drummers under the Bureau of Land Management’s newly announced end to compensatory mitigation. Outlined in a memo posted online late yesterday afternoon, BLM’s new policy of forgoing compensatory mitigation sets the agency apart from the Army Corps of Engineers, for which mitigation remains a vital permitting tool (E&E News PM, July 24). From 2010 through 2014, the Army Corps issued about 56,400 written authorizations nationally per year under its permit authorities, approximately 10 percent of which required compensatory mitigation.” [E&E News, 7/25/18 (=)]
How the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a program everyone loves, became a political football. “A federal program that has protected natural areas throughout the United States and has provided recreation opportunities for Americans since the mid-’60s is set to expire on Sept. 30 — unless Congress acts. The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), which Congress established in 1964, does not use taxpayer dollars. Instead, earnings from offshore oil and gas leasing go to federal, state and local governments to acquire and protect forest, water and wildlife areas. In nearly every congressional district, LWCF helped set up recreational activities on these public lands, including playgrounds, sports fields, picnic sites, community recreation centers and hiking trails. The Grand Canyon, the Appalachian Trail and Central Park have all benefited from LWCF.” [Yahoo News, 7/24/18 (+)]
Effort to attach LWCF to minibus falters as other options eyed. “Efforts by a bipartisan group of senators led by Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) to permanently authorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund face an uphill fight during this week's Senate minibus floor debate. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who chairs the Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, said yesterday it was unclear whether the amendment would receive a vote, given the truce between the two parties to avoid authorizing amendments in the appropriations process.” [E&E News, 7/26/18 (=)]
Another NPS leader picks retirement over reassignment. “Another leader of the National Park Service will soon be out of a job after turning down a reassignment. This time it’s Sue Masica, the head of the service’s regional office in Denver. She’ll leave at the end of August, the Park Service said this morning. Masica decided to retire instead of accepting a job that would have sent her to Omaha. Masica’s departure follows a similar decision by Yellowstone Superintendent Dan Wenk, who also opted to leave NPS after 43 years to avoid a transfer.” [E&E News, 7/25/18 (=)]
Rare bipartisan cheer for rollout of 'fix our parks' bill. “Bipartisan House legislation introduced today with a goal of whittling down the Interior Department’s massive deferred-maintenance backlog will remain separate from efforts to reauthorize the popular Land and Water Conservation Fund. House Natural Resources Chairman Rob Bishop (R-Utah) said today the ‘Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act’ will be a stand-alone bill with broad support from Republicans and Democrats in both chambers. Reauthorizing LWCF before the Sept. 30 deadline also has strong bipartisan and bicameral support, he said, but those two efforts are separate.” [E&E News, 7/25/18 (=)]
Utah Gov. Herbert pitches Zinke on moving BLM headquarters. “Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) used a visit yesterday by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to his state as another opportunity to pitch moving the headquarters of the Bureau of Land Management to the Beehive State. Paul Edwards, Herbert’s deputy chief of staff for communications and policy, confirmed that the governor and Zinke — who was in Utah yesterday to deliver brief remarks during the Days of ‘47 rodeo in Salt Lake City — did speak about a possible move of BLM headquarters from Washington, D.C., to his state. That brief conversation at the rodeo, however, was a continuation of a much longer discussion the governor had with Zinke on the issue at the Western Governors’ Association’s annual meeting last month in South Dakota, Edwards said.” [E&E News, 7/25/18 (=)]
Colorado one of 8 states to sign “treaty” to grow outdoor recreation industry. “Eight states signed an agreement Wednesday that commits them to following a set of shared principles for growing the country’s outdoor recreation economy.” [Denver Post, 7/25/18 (+)]
Guv to Congress: Fund program for conservation. “Gov. John Hickenlooper is calling on Colorado's congressional delegation to fully fund and make permanent what often has been called the nation's most important conservation program, the Land and Water Conservation Fund.” [Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, 7/25/18 (+)]
Veterans Raise Their Voices to Protect Public Lands. “Some U.S. military veterans want Congress to permanently reauthorize and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a program that protects access to public lands and recreation that is set to expire at the end of September. According to the Vet Voice Foundation, the program helps keep opportunities such as hiking and hunting open to everyone and especially is important for veterans who use the land as a place to recover after their service. In Ohio, the LWCF has protected parts of Cuyahoga Valley National Park and Wayne National Forest, as well as local parks and projects.” [Cleveland Scene, 7/25/18 (+)]
PolyMet amendment dropped from bill. “An amendment meant to expedite the land exchange between PolyMet Mining Co. and the U.S. Forest Service was dropped Monday from the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment would have reaffirmed the land swap deal that closed on June 28, with the company transferring nearly 6,900 acres of private land within the Superior National Forest boundary to the Forest Service in exchange for 6,500 acres at the mine site north of Hoyt Lakes, also nullifying four lawsuits against the deal pending in federal court.” [Duluth News, 7/24/18 (=)]
BLM fights graffiti, smashed fences at Nev. Canyon. “Drivers spinning their cars damaged a road. Other visitors smashed fences and appear to have left dead pets. Aspen trees have been cut down and graffiti sprayed. The Bureau of Land Management is fighting a pattern of vandalism at Water Canyon in northern Nevada. After the agency spent two weeks and thousands of dollars fixing a road, drivers doing stunts damaged it within 24 hours.” [E&E News, 7/25/18 (=)]
Op-Ed: Let’s work together to fix our national parks. “If we want millions of people to continue visiting and enjoying our national parks – and making return trips to celebrate our shared history and love of the natural world – we have to put our money where our mouth is, work together and move forward to reduce the backlog. Allowing our parks to crumble is simply not an option. Our national parks are the crown jewels of our public lands, and the Public Lands Legacy Restoration Fund will help ensure they remain the crown jewel for decades to come.” [The Hill, 7/25/18 (+)]
Editorial: Zinke’s Monumental spree. “The Washington Post and other media outlets this week reported that thousands of pages of emails released recently, and quickly retracted, show Zinke and other DOI officials focused on the energy, logging and ranching development potential of lands protected under the national monument designation, not public comment, beneficial tourism industry data, archaeological, historical or environmental impacts. Luckily, Craters of the Moon is known almost purely for its status as an enormous expanse of black lava rock, lava tubes and miles of unrivaled and undisturbed night sky. Archaeological research and ancient legends together suggest members of the Shoshone-Bannock likely witnessed first hand eruptions along the Great Rift. Craters is also the only home on earth to unique species of plant and animal life.” [Idaho Post-Register, 7/25/18 (+)]