Western states are attempting to block a new Bureau of Land Management policy encouraging conservation projects on public lands. Critics in these states claim that welcoming conservation work on public land would harm economic development by restricting "ranching, mining, fossil fuel production, and energy development," according to Inside Climate News.
What's happening?
The Conservation and Landscape Health Rule, which passed in May, allows for new conservation leases, similar to how the BLM leases land for mining, energy development, grazing, and other approved activities.
These "conservation leases" would allow state and local governments, environmental groups, and nonprofits to lease degraded public land for up to 10 years for restoration work, as the news report detailed. However, Western states are critical of the policy, saying it decreases the amount of land available for traditional uses, like grazing, ranching, and commercial guiding.
Most notable of these challenges is The WEST (Western Economic Security Today) Act, which outlines these concerns and calls to block the new policy. The WEST Act was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives in April in a 212-202 vote.
"The rule the BLM recently finalized undermines the very people who rely on our federal lands for ranching, grazing, recreation, and beyond," Republican Rep. John Curtis of Utah, who introduced The WEST Act, said in a statement in April after the act passed. "Utahns know the true value of these lands and they should remain open to everyone. Instead, this rule favors wealthy individuals and environmental groups, allowing them to lock up land that belongs to all Utahns."
The WEST Act isn't alone in challenging the BLM's conservation leases.
Wyoming-based industrial groups also filed a lawsuit challenging the new rule in mid-July. The groups claim the rule favors conservation leases over profit-producing land uses, violating federal statutes governing BLM land management, per Inside Climate News. Wyoming and Utah also filed a lawsuit in June challenging the rule and accusing the BLM of violating the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires federal agencies to assess the environmental effects of their proposed actions before instating policies.
Why is the BLM's policy important?
Though Western states are critical of the BLM policy, environmental activists lauded the rule as a much-needed way for conservation groups to improve the environment and revitalize public lands. Supporters also say the rule gives energy and mining companies a way to offset the environmental impacts of their projects through improving land, as the New York Times noted. And the revitalization of BLM land is sorely needed.
In 2022, data published by the bipartisan watchdog organization Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility found that 54 million acres of public land managed by the BLM didn't meet the agency's own standards for land health. Per that report, the BLM oversees 246 million acres of land — the vast majority in the Western U.S. This public land accounts for about 10% of the country.
"The rule recognizes conservation as an essential component of public lands management, on equal footing with other multiple uses of these lands," the BLM says on its website.
The BLM adds that the policy seeks to restore and safeguard public lands and waters to provide "food, energy, clean air and water, wildlife habitat, and places to recreate" for future generations.
What's being done to protect the BLM policies?
As of early September, the next stop for the WEST Act is the Senate, though it's unclear when the rule will hit the floor. The BLM avoided publicly commenting on current challenges to its policy, citing the pending litigation to media outlets. But environmental groups are set on protecting the new rule.
In a statement to Inside Climate News, Michael Carroll, director of BLM campaigns for The Wilderness Society, said the society plans to help fight the lawsuits that, along with the WEST Act, challenge the BLM rule. Carroll says the BLM's new rule is a long overdue measure in protecting public lands.
"These lawsuits do nothing to help Western states brave the very real threats already affecting their public lands, including the climate crisis," Caroll told Inside Climate News. "Nearly half a century ago, Congress mandated that the BLM consider the natural and scientific values of land, along with the needs of future generations, in its management decisions. The public lands rule will help the agency finally fulfill its 'balanced multiple use' mandate."
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
