The U.S. Department of the Interior proposed a new rule that would give conservation priorities equal weight in public land use decision-making — a change experts say constitutes one of the most significant land management policy moves in decades.
The proposed Public Lands Rule represents the culmination of decades of efforts to push the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) toward prioritizing conservation, as the organization’s ethos has traditionally focused on facilitating economic development on the vast amount of land it manages in the West.
The proposed rule would significantly affect Nevada, a state where the federal government administers more than 85 percent of the land. The BLM alone manages about 67 percent — or 48 million acres — of Nevada.
Under the proposed rule, the BLM would elevate conservation to be on equal footing with other permitted uses for federal land — such as mining, grazing, or oil and gas permitting — that have historically taken precedence. It defines conservation as pertaining to both the protection and restoration of public lands.
The rule also helps the agency advance conservation through leases to third parties, such as environmental groups or energy companies that seek to use a parcel of public land for protection or habitat conservation.
“As pressure on our public lands continues to grow, the proposed Public Lands Rule provides a path for the BLM to better focus on the health of the landscape, ensuring that our decisions leave our public lands as good or better off than we found them,” BLM Director Tracy Stone-Manning said in a statement.
The proposed rule — which will go through a notice and comment period before a final rule is proposed and adopted — was welcomed by conservation groups nationally and in Nevada, while drawing criticism from ranching industry trade groups, oil producers, and the Nevada Cattlemen’s Association, which raised concerns that the new rule could be abused to the detriment of livestock grazing and the country’s food supply.
Though most of Nevada’s congressional delegation did not comment on the proposed BLM rule, Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV), a strong supporter of renewable energy, was hesitant about how the rule change could affect permitting energy projects on public lands.
“Washington needs to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time when it comes to advancing both conservation and our transition to a clean energy economy,” she said in a statement to The Nevada Independent. “Conservation must absolutely remain a priority, but I’m concerned that this proposed BLM rule could slow appropriate clean energy development at precisely the time when we need to be speeding it up.”
Advocates say the proposed rule will boost the Biden administration’s broader conservation agenda, including restoring and conserving 30 percent of federal lands by 2030 (often referred to as 30X30).
Most lawmakers have yet to comment on the rule, which was released on Thursday right before Congress adjourned for two weeks. Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) told reporters in Carson City that she would have to review the rule more when asked Tuesday, and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto’s (D-NV) office declined to comment.
And Rep. Mark Amodei (R-NV), Nevada’s lone Republican in Congress, said he was disappointed he did not receive a heads up from Interior officials — an issue Paris echoed, saying he was not aware of Interior consulting stakeholders in Nevada before drafting the rule.
Some Western Republicans, including Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and John Barasso (R-WY) have come out against the proposed rule. Kaitlynn Glover, the executive director of the ranching industry trade group Public Lands Council, called the proposed rule a radical shift made without transparency.
“The covert manner in which the rule was developed and announced has left permittees feeling like the rule is either a capitulation to the extremist environmental groups who want to eradicate grazing from the landscape, or a concerted effort to develop rules that preclude ranchers’ input,” Glover said.
Amodei said he plans to further study the rule, but that he is suspicious of its potential to be used as a means of dragging out permitting decisions to the detriment of burgeoning industries, such as lithium mining.
He said he favors using the existing National Environmental Protection Act process for identifying conservation concerns when the BLM offers permits and allotments, and worries that the rule will inject greater uncertainty into how conservation is defined, making it easier for officials to shut down important projects.
“I hope this isn’t just another nail in the coffin of the multiple use doctrine, which I think has overall — in any objective sense — served us well,” Amodei said.
The rulemaking process will likely extend into 2024, starting with a 75-day comment period that began in early April. The Nevada Cattlemen’s Association plans to comment on their fears over how boosting conservation could hurt livestock grazing. Paris said the group is also worried that the language around ACECs could be abused.
Proposed Rule Summary:
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposes new regulations that, pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), as amended, and other relevant authorities, would advance the BLM’s mission to manage the public lands for multiple use and sustained yield by prioritizing the health and resilience of ecosystems across those lands. To ensure that health and resilience, the proposed rule provides that the BLM will protect intact landscapes, restore degraded habitat, and make wise management decisions based on science and data. To support these activities, the proposed rule would apply land health standards to all BLM-managed public lands and uses, clarify that conservation is a “use” within FLPMA’s multiple-use framework, and revise existing regulations to better meet FLPMA’s requirement that the BLM prioritize designating and protecting Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs). The proposed rule would add to provide an overarching framework for multiple BLM programs to promote ecosystem resilience on public lands.
See the full document at https://tinyurl.com/25k55376