High gas prices, a looming election and fears of a costly legal battle seem to have shifted the political calculus for the president.
Tag Archives: Federal Lands
Where the Bison Could Roam
Bison once numbered in the tens of millions in the United States. Now, a nonprofit is working to restore the shortgrass prairie, where the American icons and their ecosystem can thrive again.
Biden Promises Protections for Nevada’s Spirit Mountain
But the president stopped short of designating the ecologically and cultural important region, also known as Avi Kwa Ame, as a national monument.
A Fire, an Arrest, and a New Challenge for the Federal Burn Program
U.S. Forest Service officials decried the arrest of an employee who was leading prescribed burns in Oregon, where residents accused the agency of reckless burning.
One of the Best Climate Solutions Is an Unlogged Forest. Let’s Keep Them That Way.
Biden should take all steps available to stop commercial logging on federal land.
Biden Prepares Actions to Cut Emissions After Signing Climate Bill
Regulations from the E.P.A. and elsewhere will help the president meet his aggressive climate goals, administration officials say.
Harriet Hageman, Poised to Defeat Liz Cheney, Has Anti-Environment History
Harriet Hageman, who is challenging Representative Liz Cheney, worked for decades as a lawyer opposing environmentalists and federal regulations of resources in Wyoming.
Death Valley’s Invasive Donkeys Have Become Cat Food
Feral burros wreck wetlands in the desert national park. But a study found that when mountain lions prey on them, the donkeys may help some terrain thrive.
In a First, Tribes Will Jointly Manage a National Monument
Five Native American tribes will work with the Bureau of Land Management to plan and conserve Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, officials said.
Climate Groups Use Endangered Species Act to Try to Stop Drilling
Environmentalists say the government failed to study the threats to endangered species from climate change before issuing oil and gas drilling permits.
Biden Administration Cancels Oil Drilling Sales in Alaska and Gulf of Mexico
Republicans link the move to rising gas prices while the administration said it was a result of conflicting legal opinions and a lack of interest among bidders.
Dozens of Wild Horses Killed by Mystery Disease at Colorado Facility
The outbreak has killed at least 85 horses since Saturday, and laboratory tests are being completed to identify the fatal illness, the Bureau of Land Management said.
Cherokee Nation Can Gather Sacred Plants on National Park Land
Five decades after the park service took over the Buffalo National River in Arkansas, the Cherokee can once again gather plants there to create medicine, food and supplies.
Biden Plans to Open More Public Land to Drilling
The president is under pressure to bring down gas prices, but any new supply would be years away. The fees that companies pay would rise sharply.
660 U.S. Place Names Include a Slur for Native Women. Change Is Coming.
The Interior Department is asking tribes for help finding new names for mountains, rivers and other landmarks that include the offensive term “squaw.”
Biden Administration Halts New Drilling in Legal Fight Over Climate Costs
The Justice Department is pausing new federal oil and gas leases and permits after a judge blocked the government from weighing the cost of climate damage in decisions.
Federal Court Revokes Oil and Gas Leases, Citing Climate Change
A judge ruled that the Interior Department must consider the climate impacts of oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico before awarding leases.
Biden Administration Approves Two California Solar Projects
The solar farms, planned for the California desert, would generate enough electricity to power about 132,000 homes, the Interior Department said.
Interior Dept. Report on Drilling Is Mostly Silent on Climate Change
The department recommended higher fees for oil and gas leases, but there was no sign the government planned to take global warming into account when weighing new applications.
Biden Plans to Bar New Drilling Around a Major Native American Cultural Site
After years of tribal requests, the president plans to block new oil and gas leases within 10 miles of Chaco Canyon in New Mexico. The ban is likely to generate strong pushback from industry.
Senate Confirms Biden’s Pick to Lead the Bureau of Land Management
After a party-line vote, Tracy Stone-Manning became the leader of an agency that manages oil and gas drilling on public lands.
Last Stop on the Way to the Cosmos? No Thanks.
A small Southern county hopes to land a starring role in the commercial space race. But for residents of the exclusive islands in the flight path, the stakes feel sky-high.
Federal Judge Says Biden Cannot Pause New Leases for Drilling on Public Lands
President Biden suspended new oil and gas drilling leases on federal lands. A judge in Louisiana ruled those leases could not be temporarily halted.
Biden Aims to End Arctic Drilling. A Trump-Era Law Could Foil His Plans.
The administration suspended leases that were auctioned in the waning days of the Trump White House. But a 2017 law requires another sale.
The Promise and Pressures of Deb Haaland, the First Native American Cabinet Secretary
As interior secretary, Ms. Haaland runs an agency once responsible for eradicating the homes, culture and often the lives of Indigenous people.
Wild Horses Adopted Under a Federal Program Are Going to Slaughter
Records show that some people who are paid $1,000 a head by the government to give legally protected mustangs “good homes” are sending the horses to auction once they get the money.
The Lithium Gold Rush: Inside the Race to Power Electric Vehicles
A race is on to produce lithium in the United States, but competing projects are taking very different approaches to extracting the vital raw material. Some might not be very green.
Why Biden Must Save Bears Ears National Monument
‘We are rooted to Mother Earth through her body like the plants are rooted to the soil.’
How to Reserve a Campsite, Even at the Last Minute
Who says you can’t get a reservation for the great outdoors this weekend?
Deb Haaland Becomes First Native American Cabinet Secretary
The Senate confirmed Ms. Haaland to lead the Interior Department. She’ll be charged with essentially reversing the agency’s course over the past four years.
Get Outside and Safely Visit a National Park
Now is the time to start looking ahead, to spring and summer excursions in the great outdoors.
A Sacred Place Undone by Trump Must Be Saved by Biden
Bears Ears is one of the nation’s most compelling and mysterious landscapes and a place of worship for Native Americans.
Native Americans ‘Left Out in the Cold’ Under Trump Press Biden for Action
After showing political clout in the 2020 election, tribal communities are hoping for more attention and money to address their long-running problems with poverty, health care and other issues.
Biden Launches Climate Change Efforts
The president will announce a suite of executive actions on Wednesday to combat climate change, two people familiar with his plans said, including a ban on new oil and gas drilling on federal land.
Trump Opens Habitat of a Threatened Owl to Timber Harvesting
Going far beyond expectations, the Trump administration eliminated protection from more than three million acres of northern spotted owl habitat in the Pacific Northwest.
Biden Plans to Conserve 30 Percent of America’s Lands
That’s how much land Biden wants to conserve over the next decade. But is it possible?
Biden Announces Climate Team, Including Gina McCarthy, Deb Haaland and Michael Regan
The president-elect said he has chosen a team that prioritizes making clean energy jobs and environmental protection the cornerstone of his economic plans.
In Last Rush, Trump Grants Mining and Energy Firms Access to Public Lands
The outgoing administration is pushing through approval of corporate projects over the opposition of environmental groups and tribal communities.
Biden Will Pick Deb Haaland to Lead Interior Department
The appointment would make history if confirmed by the Senate, placing a Native American in a cabinet secretary position for the first time.
Arctic Seismic Work Will Not Hurt Polar Bears, Government Says
The announcement removes a major hurdle to approving a plan to hunt for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, part of a push to allow drilling there by the Trump administration.
End the Taxpayer Giveaway to Big Oil and Gas
Congress should raise the royalty rates on federal lands.
A Weird Monolith Is Found in the Utah Desert
A team surveying bighorn sheep for Utah’s wildlife agency found the strange object, 10 to 12 feet tall, embedded in the ground in a remote part of Red Rock Country. It’s probably art, officials said.
Judges Tell Trump His Officials Are Serving Illegally. He Does Nothing.
Three high-ranking administration officials have been found by courts to be working in violation of a 1998 law that governs how a president can appoint temporary officials.
Top U.S. Lands Official Served Unlawfully for Over a Year, a Federal Judge Rules
A federal judge in Montana ordered William Perry Pendley, whose appointment was not confirmed by the Senate, to leave the position.
Fleeing the Trolls for the Grizzly Bears
When “civilization” oppresses, wilderness is the best therapy.
Trump Administration Finalizes Plan to Open Oil Drilling in Alaska’s Arctic Refuge
The decision sets up a fierce legal battle over the fate of a vast, remote area that is home to polar bears, caribou and the promise of oil wealth.
Trump Administration Undoes Rules That Restrict Bear Hunting in Alaska
The move reverses an Obama-era ban on hunting methods like baiting bears with doughnuts and shooting swimming caribou.
Border Wall Land Grabs Accelerate as Owners Shelter From Pandemic
With private property proving hard to acquire, the administration has stepped up efforts to secure land on the Mexican border for President Trump’s wall.