G2. Local Greens

File:  ltr to Congress, 76 scientists 2012.pdfResource Type: Letters

File:  ltr to Congress, 76 scientists 2012.pdfResource Type: Letters

An investigation by ABC News has shed new light on the problem of abandoned mines in the Western U.S. and across the country. The investigation compiled records from the Office of Surface Mine Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE), part of the Department of the Interior, to create an interactive map of more than 230,000 documented abandoned mine sites.

Many of the documented abandoned mines are in coal-producing regions in the eastern U.S. The investigation points out that since the 1970s, coal mining companies have been required to develop and execute remediation plans to restore the land after coal mining operations have ended, and OSMRE’s Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Program, established in 1977, addresses legacy coal mines using fees on current coal production. However, there is not a similar funding source for reclaiming hardrock mines, which are much more common in the West. The ABC News map shows just how many documented abandoned mines are concentrated across Western states.

OSMRE officials also acknowledge that there may be many more abandoned mine sites that are not documented or identified. “Mining back in 1865 or 1880 or 1890, there are no records of that. No one kept records,” Lanny Erdos, an OSMRE official, told ABC News. “There potentially can be mines out there that we would have no idea that they are there until they express themselves in some adverse way.”

Quick hits As Pitkin County looks toward management of the Maroon Bells, what does it mean for the iconic place?

CPR News

Conservation group calls for moratorium on AI data centers on US public lands

Reuters

Veteran Interior department lawyer resigns in protest, warns of ‘assault on the rule of law’

Public Domain

Three principles for a wildfire-resilient nation

Ground Shift

Wrongly indicted Olympian seeks investigation into potential DOI, DOJ misconduct in Reflecting Pool case

New York Times | Washington Post | CBS News | ABC News

Forest Service rangers helped ICE detain a group of campers. Now, Congress wants answers

Backpacker

A long (long) walk down Ambler Road

GearJunkie

This sky island destination will likely be America’s next national park

SFGATE

Quote of the day

What’s it going to be? ‘The Maroon Bells brought to you by Budweiser’?”

—Victor Valinskas, visitor to the Maroon Bells Scenic Area, CPR News

Picture This @greatbasinnp

On a cool September evening, sundown reveals the Great Basin one layer at a time: rock and rabbitbrush, sagebrush and pinyon-juniper, the broad basin below, and distant mountain ranges rising beyond it.

These isolated ranges are sometimes described as “sky islands”—higher, cooler habitats surrounded by lower, drier country. Each change in elevation brings changes in temperature, moisture, plants, and wildlife.

But this landscape offers something that cannot be measured by elevation alone.

Quiet. Distance. Room to breathe.

Great Basin National Park preserves not only mountains, caves, ancient trees, and dark night skies, but also opportunities to experience solitude. Sometimes the landscape’s quietest moments tell its story best.

What do you notice first when you look across the Great Basin?

Photo Credit: NPS/G. Zierdt

 

Featured image: An abandoned mine in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, D&RG Railfan via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY 3.0

The post Abandoned mines ‘a constant problem’ across the West appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

By KAY MATTHEWS

The Carson National Forest is proposing a huge, forest management project on the Questa and Camino Real Ranger Districts called “Truchas to Upper Costilla Headwaters Active Management Project.” It includes 491,942 acres across all of the Questa district south to the village of Truchas on the south end of the Camino Real. The stated goal of the project is to restore a more natural fire regime to the landscape over a 10-year period.

It appears to be promulgated by two directives: the Enchanted Circle  Priority Landscape on the west side of the Sangre de Cristos that was listed as one of the 10 most threatened forest areas for catastrophic fire in the country; and “April 4, 2025 the Secretary of Agriculture determined that the Forest Service may carry out Authorized Emergency Actions under section 40807 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (PL 117-58) on National Forest System lands that are either, (1) rated as very high or high for wildfire risk or (2) experiencing declining forest health, at risk of experiencing substantially increased tree mortality over the next 15 years from insect and disease infestation, or contain hazard trees posing an imminent risk to public health, infrastructure, and safety.” This is the directive that causes worry under Trump’s Secretary of Agriculture for its potential use for more industrial logging in national forests.

Most of the people I’ve spoken with were unaware of the project until the Carson released the Draft Environmental Assessment (EA). Under Public Involvement in the EA it says that the Carson convened a group of stakeholders that “included State and County entities, Pueblos, two watershed-based groups, and the Philmont Scout Ranch.” This was the Enchanted Circle Treatment Mapping Work Group that met to identify shared forest treatment and restoration priorities. They reference the Appendix for more detailed information of the group’s work. Normally, before the Trump administration’s evisceration of the NEPA process (National Environmental Policy Act), the first step in the EA or EIS process is to send out a scoping letter to all its stakeholders with an outline of the proposed project soliciting input. This step seems to have been excluded in for this project. I’m not assailing the Enchanted Circle Treatment Mapping Work Group, that no doubt contributed informed input to the project, just questioning the process.

The EA includes maps that show the proposed areas for treatment. One map color codes them for forest type: mixed conifer, frequent fire; mixed conifer with aspen; montane/subalpine grassland; piñon juniper sage; piñon juniper woodland; ponderosa pine forest; riparian; sagebrush; sparsely vegetated; spruce fur forest. Another map then rates these designated areas with fuels treatment priorities. On the Questa District, with which I’m less familiar, there are several relatively small areas in first priority red, east of the village of Questa in mixed conifer with aspen and south in the piñon juniper sagebrush. On the Camino Real District, first priority is east of Taos near SH 64 in sagebrush scrubland, near Picuris Pueblo, along SH 518, and with most of the first priority in the southern part of the district in ponderosa pine.

Treatments will include a variety of types: hand or mechanical tree felling on slopes less that 40 percent; tree felling mainly by hand, on steep slopes followed by cable yarding; mechanical tree felling that will include harvesters and forwarders or tree-bunchers; hand thinning with material left for fuelwood gathering; and prescribed fire preparation that will include pruning of ladder fuels, tree thinning mastication, chipping, snag mitigation; and brush removal.

Prescribed fire will be used on 112,865 acres utilizing pile burning to remove slash or fuels created by forest thinning; jackpot (vegetative fuels) burning to remove surface fuels; and broadcast burning to apply fire across the broad area of a burn unit. Prescribed fire would continue over a long-time frame of over 10 years to mimick the natural fire intervals in each forest type. Total prescribed fire acres will vary widely year to year based on weather conditions, funding, and other factors.

There is much more in the EA on post-disturbance treatment, the transportation system, i.e., the use of existing roads, temporary roads, and new roads. If you have a special concern you can easily read through the first 30 pages of the EA to find the section that applies. There are community members who are opposed to the thinning and burning projects that have already occurred on the districts, so the thought of commercial logging probably raises some hackles. In one of the Action Alternatives that was rejected, the Forest Service argued that, following the guidelines of the Carson Forest Land Management Plan, most the of the material will be valued as fuelwood, while the larger timber can be milled for lumber or vigas. The value of larger trees can help offset the cost of proposed treatments, allow additional acres to be treated, and provide economic opportunity to local businesses.

The EA notes the forest restoration and wildland/urban interface projects that have already been implemented, many of which we’ve covered in La Jicarita: Las Trampas; Kiowa Sant Cristobal Wildland/Urban Interface; Pueblo Ridge; and McGaffey Ridge.  Community stewardship projects such as the leñero program could continue to achieve the purpose and need of the project. With the knowledge gained by the people who’ve been working in the forest, hopefully the Forest Service will actively seek their participation in on-the-ground decisions as to specific treatment areas and methods. The recently rejuvenated Tres Rios Watershed Coalition, which organized back in 2018 to promote restoration projects within the larger Embudo Valley watershed, recently recommended specific areas of concern in its comments on the EA. Hopefully other organizations or individuals can provide this on-the-ground feedback in the comments. In an article in the Taos News, Carson Forest Planner Peter Rich told the group that had gathered for a Taos Valley Watershed Coalition to discuss the Truchas to Costilla project: ” . . . the proposal is a ‘map of opportunities; it’s not a map of proposed projects.’ He said boundaries could change based on additional wildlife or archaeological surveys, as well as ‘based on who’s available to do the work and what capability people have, and then where we get money.’ The tools used to accomplish the desired outcome could vary, too, but ‘where we’re trying to get to doesn’t change.’”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
October 6, 2026

Lawsuit Targets Utah Oil Highway Threatening World-Renowned Nine Mile Canyon – 10.6.26 Construction to Demolish 100-Foot-Tall Canyon Walls, Damage Native Rock Imagery, Utah History

Contacts:
Grant Stevens, Communications Director, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA); (319) 427-0260; grant@suwa.org
Mike Hansen, Nine Mile Canyon Coalition, (801) 916-2491, jmichaelhansen@gmail.com
Deeda Seed, Center for Biological Diversity, (801) 803-9892, dseed@biologicaldiversity.org

SALT LAKE CITY, UT —The Nine Mile Canyon Coalition, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, and Center for Biological Diversity today sued the Trump administration’s Bureau of Land Management for approving construction of a hydrocarbon highway through Utah’s scenic, culturally and historically significant Gate Canyon in eastern Utah.

The project would straighten 6 miles of what is currently a scenic, winding, gravel road through Gate Canyon and involves the blasting and destruction of 100-foot tall canyon walls, damaging Native rock imagery, Utah history, and habitat for threatened wildlife.

“This lawsuit challenges the Trump administration’s disgraceful plan to transform a quiet backcountry road into a highway clogged with speeding oil tanker trucks,” said Deeda Seed, senior Utah campaigner at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Blasting through Gate Canyon’s walls will be a disaster for nearby animals, including threatened Mexican spotted owls. We’re going to court to protect this irreplaceable cultural treasure and the animals calling it home.”

Gate Canyon is located in Utah’s West Tavaputs Plateau region, between the towns of Myton and Wellington. It feeds into Nine Mile Canyon — a world-renowned archaeological area that contains more than 10,000 unique, irreplaceable cultural, historical and archaeological resources. The proposed route of the highway, designed to accommodate 70-foot oil tankers, cuts directly through the rugged landscape and will fundamentally alter the character of Gate Canyon.

“In the words of Joni Mitchell, the BLM has approved the ‘paving of paradise.’  But instead of putting in a parking lot, the BLM has given its OK to the building of a highway to carry crude oil from the Uinta Basin to Carbon County,” said J. Michael Hansen, president of the Nine Mile Canyon Coalition. “It’s like constructing a highway through the Louvre Museum.”

Today’s lawsuit challenges the BLM’s rushed and behind-closed-doors environmental review for failing to disclose or analyze the threats of increased traffic and canyon blasting on wildlife, the area’s rock imagery, historic axle grease inscriptions and scenery, and for failing to consider alternative, less damaging routes.

The BLM also ignored its own resource management plans that require protecting the area’s cultural and scenic values and violated the federal National Historic Preservation Act and the Endangered Species Act. The bureau failed to consider the project’s threats to Mexican spotted owls, despite the fact that the cliffs near the proposed blasting areas are identified as potential owl habitat.

“The BLM knew that prior versions of this same proposal were extremely controversial and faced fierce public headwinds,” said Landon Newell, staff attorney with the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance. “This time around, instead of facing the public, they hid their decision and rushed their analysis and approval, all under the guise of Trump’s “Energy Dominance” agenda.”

The project, known as the “Wells Draw Road Amendment – Gate Canyon,” was proposed by Duchesne County and approved by the BLM on April 28, 2026. It is intended to provide an alternative route for transporting oil out of the Uinta Basin. The current backcountry road would be transformed to accommodate 70-foot oil tanker trucks traveling to the oil fields and transloading facilities in Carbon County, Utah. If the destruction of Gate Canyon moves forward, as many as 1,000 vehicles could pass through each day — the equivalent of “[a] tanker truck every 7 minutes,” according to news reports.

This marks the third attempt by Duchesne County to destroy Gate Canyon. In 2015 and 2022, the BLM received similar applications to realign Gate Canyon Road, but those projects were abandoned amid significant public opposition. The BLM quietly posted the latest iteration of the project in March 2026 without issuing public notice or opening a formal comment period. After learning of the project, conservation groups quickly requested that the BLM allow for public participation opportunities in the decision-making process. The agency denied those requests and quickly approved the project in late April.

Nine Mile Canyon is often referred to as “the world’s longest art gallery” because of its extensive collection of rock imagery and archeological sites. Previous BLM studies describe the area as containing “a significant and high density of historic, cultural, and archeological sites joined together in several overlapping historic landscapes” and saying it “is known to contain the country’s highest concentration of rock imagery panels, remnants of the prehistoric Archaic, Fremont, and Ute cultures…The rock structural remains of Fremont homes, granaries, and ‘forts’ are more visible in Nine Mile Canyon than almost anywhere in the Fremont cultural area.”

###
The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance (SUWA) is a nonprofit organization with members and supporters from around the country dedicated to protecting America’s redrock wilderness. From offices in Moab, Salt Lake City, and Washington, DC, our team of professionals defends the redrock, organizes support for America’s Red Rock Wilderness Act, and stewards a world-renowned landscape. Learn more at www.suwa.org.

The post Lawsuit Targets Utah Oil Highway Threatening World-Renowned Nine Mile Canyon – 10.6.26 appeared first on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.

On Monday, contractors knocked down an iconic “grandmother” cottonwood tree on federal land in the San Rafael Valley near Lochiel, Arizona to clear the way for border wall construction. Armed Border Patrol agents cleared an encampment of about 50 people who had gathered to try to protect the cottonwood after three others had already been felled. All four trees were estimated to be as many as 250 years old. The protesters’ efforts included taking turns camping in the tree itself to ensure it was occupied at all times for more than 70 days. Ten protesters were cited and at least another 12 were arrested, including the person who was camped in the tree itself at the time and was forcibly removed from the tree using a cherry picker.

“We are resolute,” said Kate Scott, one of the protesters. “This movement is not going anywhere. They have cut down our grandmother, but her roots are within us.” A similar continual-occupation protest is also happening in a tree on the Mexican side of the border, and a demonstration at the local Bureau of Land Management office is planned for later this week to protest the agency’s recent land closure orders related to border wall construction in the area.

The Border Patrol’s actions fit with a pattern of using the southern border to militarize national public lands, as Center for Western Priorities Creative Content and Policy Manager Lilly Bock-Brownstein wrote in a Westwise blog post earlier this year. “If the administration continues on its current course, these iconic landscapes will continue to be collateral damage,” Bock-Brownstein wrote. “Border security should not require the permanent sacrifice of America’s public lands, and it should not come at the cost of the heritage and economies of the communities that surround them.”

Quick hits Analysis: 99% of commenters oppose motorized use changes in forests

Wyoming Public Radio

Native nations sue over Endangered Species Act changes

High Country News

Supreme Court grapples with case on holding Big Oil liable for climate change

Washington Post

NPS denies request to maintain water stations along Arizona-Mexico border for migrants

KJZZ

Winter is coming, and Crater Lake National Park is in trouble

SFGATE

Residents express worries about copper mine’s return

Las Cruces New Mexican

Judge jails man in moose abuse case and warns: Wyoming values wildlife

WyoFile

Heinrich: Repealing the roadless rule ignores public approval

The Hill

Quote of the day

The Roadless Rule is overwhelmingly popular, including with sportsmen, anglers, campers and recreators. It is so popular that the administration knows it will lose if it consults the public on dismantling it. Thus, the administration is simply refusing to hold public meetings at all. That is not only insulting—it is undemocratic. And it is a failure to listen to the people these lands belong to.”

—U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, The Hill

Picture This @rockynps

“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”
— L. M. Montgomery

October is a special time of the year in Rocky Mountain National Park. Enjoy shades of green, gold, orange, red, and purple throughout the park.

Image Credits: NPS

 

Featured image: San Rafael Valley border wall construction in southern Arizona. Russ McSpadden, Center for Biological Diversity

The post Arrests made as Border Patrol cuts down iconic tree to clear way for border wall appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

California state agencies used a confidentiality agreement to keep some communications regarding the scientific basis for the updated Bay-Delta Plan hidden from public knowledge, as revealed by Ashley Zavala on KCRA’s CA Politics 360 show.

The agreement between the State Water Resources Control Board, Department of Water Resources, and Department of Fish and Wildlife was discovered by Baykeeper Managing Attorney Eric Buescher through a California Public Records Act request. 

“It kept all of those communications between those agencies secret, which basically means it kept the science about water quality and fish biology and the impacts to native fish and wildlife that depend on them secret and out of the public’s eyes,” said Buescher. 

Restore the Delta’s Executive Director Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla also shared similar concerns over the lack of transparency, saying, “If we don’t have the basis of the science and the public can’t see that, we can’t have confidence in the decisions being made and the outcomes.” The Legislative Analyst’s Office has also requested greater transparency around the Voluntary Agreements, emphasizing the importance of making related data and reports available to the public.

With the State Water Resources Control Board scheduled to vote on the updated Bay-Delta Plan on October 28-29, the need for transparency, particularly around the science behind decisions at our State agencies, is critical for public confidence and fair processes. 

See the full coverage here.

The Environment Agency (EA) has admitted mistakes in its official assessment of plans for gas drilling and fracking at Burniston in North Yorkshire, following widespread criticism.

But this has failed to satisfy critics, who have called on the EA to scrap the assessment and start again.

Photo: DrillOrDrop

In August 2026, the EA said it was minded to approve the permit application, by Europa Oil & Gas, for plans at Burniston. The environmental permit is considered separately from planning permission, which was refused by North Yorkshire Council earlier this year.

The EA set out its reasons for the minded to approve in a report, the draft decision document. It invited comments before making a final decision.

In past two months, the EA has been accused of errors in the draft decision document, as well as inconsistency and missing information.

The document was the subject of a formal complaint by one campaigner. There have also been numerous objections from organisations and individuals.

Update from EA website on Burniston permit application

In an online update, the EA has responded to some of the objections:

“There are a number of minor typographical errors and inconsistencies in use of terminology, within our published draft decision document.”

“While we acknowledge these drafting errors, we would like to reassure you that they do not affect the underlying technical assessment, evidence base or regulatory considerations. 

“Our assessment has been undertaken in accordance with the relevant legal and technical requirements and remains subject to scrutiny throughout the permitting process.

“We will upload our updated decision document onto this consultation page as soon as possible. The technical assessment remains unchanged.

“We will keep the consultation open during this time.”

The update followed an earlier announcement by the EA that the public consultation on the draft decision document, due to end on 26 September 2026, would close instead 25 days later on 21 October 2026. At the time, there was no explanation about why the consultation had been extended and the EA did not respond to our questions.

The EA’s update has already been criticised by local organisations and campaigners, including Burniston Parish Council and a community group.

“EA process and report discredited”

Richard Parsons, chair of Burniston Parish Council, said the EA’s description of “minor typographical errors and inconsistencies” seemed to be “a long way from the truth”.

He said in a statement to DrillOrDrop:

“At Burniston Parish Council we have been looking with great interest at the Environment Agency report into the Europa Oil and Gas proposed gas fracking site at Burniston.

“The EA held a public meeting at Burniston as part of the planning process and the EA report process. After the meeting there was concern from both Councillors and members of this community that the EA had little understanding of the effect that fracking for gas in this location would have on the environment, both locally and further afield.

“When the report was published alongside a public consultation process it was scrutinised in great detail. A series of errors and apparent lack of understanding from the EA were identified. Our Council responded in detail.

“To call the errors ‘minor typographical errors and inconsistencies in use of terminology’ seems to be a long way from the truth. It’s a mess!

“The public response time was extended from the 23rd of September until 21st October, based, it would appear, on the EA report being incorrect. The report is lengthy and requires a lot of time to scrutinise and respond to. For anyone to respond accurately on the latest version of the EA report, is not possible.

“We have asked for a further public open meeting based on the evidence that is now available. To date we have received no reply.

“It appears as though the EA process and report is now discredited. We request that the EA report is withdrawn and started again. Also a public open meeting arranged prior to the report being finalised.

“At Burniston Parish Council we would take the opportunity to remind the Environment Agency of the requirements to prepare and publish a report, that is based on all the evidence and is accurate in its conclusions. Anything less, including errors and inconsistences, is not acceptable.’

“EA assurance is disingenuous”

The campaign group, Frack Free Coastal Communities (FFCC), welcomed the EA’s acknowledgment of drafting problems in the draft decision document.

But it added:

“Their assurance that this does not affect the technical assessment and evidence base informing their decision is disingenuous.

“It is their misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the evidence base that has led to inconsistencies in terminology. This in turn derives from their reliance on language and interpretations of evidence provided by Europa in their permit application.

“We suspect that this partial mea culpa is a face-saving first step in a process of reviewing their assessment and decision making. Extending the consultation by four weeks simply to correct a few typos is not credible – a more fundamental review is surely (and rightly) under way. And when a revised decision document is published, we expect the Environment Agency to re-start the consultation so that the new documents can be subject to the same public scrutiny as the ones they now admit are flawed.”

“EA quality control depends on public”

The EA has also responded to the formal complaint by campaigner Dennis May.

He had accused the EA of multiple problems with its handling of the Burniston permit, including:

• Failing to act in the public interest
• Providing “inaccurate, inconsistent and contradictory information”
• Aligning itself with “misleading, confected, and conflated terminology” used by Europa Oil & Gas
• Failing to remain impartial
• Regarding the public consultation as “a mere formality, irrespective of evidence”.

The EA said in response:

“We have reviewed the points you raised and agree that there are a number of minor typographical errors and inconsistencies in the use of terminology, within the published draft decision document.

“We are taking steps to correct these, and to understand how they occurred, so that we can minimise the risk of similar issues arising in future.

“We appreciate that accuracy and attention to detail are important in maintaining public confidence in our regulatory processes. While we acknowledge these drafting errors, we would like to reassure you that they do not reflect our underlying technical assessment, evidence base or regulatory considerations that form part of our determination.

“Our assessment has been undertaken in accordance with all the relevant legal and technical requirements and remains subject to scrutiny throughout the permitting process.

“We will upload an updated draft decision document onto the Citizen Space consultation webpage as soon as possible. We will keep the consultation webpage open during this time. Our technical assessment remains unchanged.

“We will then allow an extra two weeks for the consultation to run in light of the changes made.”

On Mr May’s criticism of terminology, the EA said:

“The terms used by oil and gas operators to describe their activities are not always used consistently across the industry. Unless a term is defined in law, there is no single agreed definition. When we write permits and decision documents, we often use the same terminology as the operator’s application to help readers compare the documents more easily.”

Mr May said today:

“The EAs failings in this matter are strongly indicative of systemic shortfalls in the management of the permitting process.

“It is concerning that any semblance of quality control appears to be totally dependent upon intervention by members of the public.”

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will open its new term with a major climate lawsuit brought by Boulder, Colorado as its first case. In 2018, the city and county of Boulder sued ExxonMobil and Suncor, alleging that the companies misled the public about their climate impacts, in violation of Colorado state law. The Supreme Court will hear a request from ExxonMobil and Suncor to block the case from being heard in Colorado district court; a ruling on jurisdiction over these types of cases would have implications for several other pending cases across the country.

“These big oil companies are really desperate to escape trial in these cases so they’re asking the Supreme Court to step in and save them from trial,” Corey Riday-White, legal director for The Center for Climate Integrity, told the Denver Post. “It’s clear the fossil fuel industry doesn’t want the damning evidence of their climate lies to be presented at trial.”

Lawmakers introduce bill to prevent future orphaned wells

On Friday, several Western members of Congress introduced the Stop Orphaned Wells Act, which seeks to prevent oil and gas companies from leaving behind orphaned wells on national public lands. In 2024 the Bureau of Land Management updated bonding requirements to better ensure that oil and gas companies can pay to clean up their own wells, but the Trump administration’s recent proposed Oil and Gas Rule would roll back these updated requirements. The Stop Orphaned Wells Act would codify and strengthen bonding requirements and other accountability measures.

Quick hits Judge blocks border wall construction in Big Bend in Texas

New York Times

Long-awaited Senate deal to speed permitting faces familiar hurdles

Inside Climate News

Massive nuclear plant/waste dump/data center complex planned for BLM land in Utah

The Land Desk

Nevada backcountry vulnerable to more off-roading, logging under federal rule changes

Nevada Independent

Effort to save California’s iconic Joshua trees scrapped after Trump administration blocks funding

Los Angeles Times

Tweak to Endangered Species Act could allow widespread development

Mountain Journal

Opinion: If Doug Burgum got a performance review

RE:PUBLIC

Baseball in a national park? We found 7 ball fields at Grand Teton and Yellowstone

WyoFile

Quote of the day

They said that the [baseball] field was a good place for employees to get outside and recreate. Cory and I both turned and gestured towards the Tetons at the same time and said something like ‘they have this right here.’ I think at that moment they understood that their proposal wouldn’t fly.”

—Brad Boner, Wyoming photographer, WyoFile

Picture This @usinterior

Fall has entered the chat.

Quaking aspens turn brilliant shades of yellow each fall, but what you see above ground is only part of the story.

An entire stand of aspens can be connected underground by a single root system, meaning what looks like hundreds of individual trees may actually be one genetically identical organism. The trunks can live for a century, while the roots beneath them can survive for thousands of years.

Photos by Jim Grindley | @chileno_hikertron and NPS

 

Featured image: Smoke from the Marshall Fire over Superior, Colorado; the destructive impacts of this fire are widely attributed to climate change driven by oil and gas production. Tristantech via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 4.0

The post Supreme Court to open term with Colorado climate lawsuit appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

• Native tribes denied greater say in water decisions with Newsom veto
• Newsom Vetoes Sacred Sites and Tribal Water Bills Despite Overwhelming Votes
• Tribal advocates say Newsom apologized for state history, then vetoed their bills
• Governor Newsom Ignores Water-Sector Consensus and Fails to Make Water Affordable in California 

Newsom’s final legislative session has ended with broken promises, and sweeping vetoes of critical legislation. On September 30th, Governor Newsom vetoed AB 2218, Water policy: California Native American tribes. The bill, authored by Assemblymember Ash Kalra and co-sponsored by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok and the Karuk Tribe, passed both chambers of the California Legislature with unanimous support: 28-0 in the Senate and 56-0 in the Assembly. Despite Newsom’s work with tribes on stewardship and landback initiatives, this decision highlights the State’s inability to translate words into actionable change.

In his veto message, Governor Newsom reiterated his administration’s recognition of “the historical harms perpetrated against Native peoples and tribal governments in California.” He attempts to rationalize this veto and continuing trend of leaving tribes out of important water decisions, arguing that passing this bill would undermine water policies addressing climate change, create duplicate work, and potentially disrupt important regulations, policies, permits, and grant criteria moving forward.

Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians Vice Chair Malissa Tayaba responded directly to this decision, stating, “Newsom’s veto of AB 2218 is a backhanded betrayal of California Tribes and a direct contradiction of his apology and promises of reconciliation. For nearly 200 years, California has made decisions about our waters without us, disregarding the tribes whose cultures, communities and lifeways depend on them. Newsom had instead aligned with ‘special water interests that profit from extractive and exploitive water management.’” 

The Los Angeles Times and Sacramento Bee reported on the veto, depicting the long history of exclusion in California, and the importance of AB 2218 in providing Tribes a greater role in decisions affecting California water resources. Karuk Tribe Chairman Russell “Buster” Attebery said tribes “need to be at the table when decisions are being made,” and the bill was an important step toward changing that. The article also highlights California’s troubled water history dating back to the Gold Rush, when Tribes were forcibly removed from their lands and left without meaningful rights to the water resources they depended on. 

In a continuing trend of vetoing important legislation, the Community Water Center’s bill, SB 1125: Water Rate Assistance Program, was another casualty of Governor Newsom’s September 30th legislative decisions. The groundbreaking legislation would have established a statewide Low-Income Water Rate Assistance Program, the first of its kind in the nation. Authored by Senator Caroline Menjivar, the bill would have addressed water affordability and helped ensure that families across California have access to safe and affordable water.

Read more about each bill and the Governor’s vetoes below:

• Native tribes denied greater say in water decisions with Newsom veto
• Newsom Vetoes Sacred Sites and Tribal Water Bills Despite Overwhelming Votes
• Tribal advocates say Newsom apologized for state history, then vetoed their bills
• Governor Newsom Ignores Water-Sector Consensus and Fails to Make Water Affordable in California 

Reabold Resources has announced its takeover offer for Union Jack Oil has lapsed.

At the today’s deadline, the bid was supported by holders of just over 13% of Union Jack share capital.

Reabold said in a statement this evening it had not received sufficient acceptances from Union Jack investors by 1pm.

Extract from Reabold Resources statement, issued at 5.15pm, 2 October 2026

The offer was conditional on receiving acceptances from holders of at least 75% of Union Jack’s existing share capital.

Reabold said that at 1pm today (2 October 2026), it had received acceptances from about 13.02%.

The statement said:

“As such, the Acceptance Condition has not been satisfied and the Offer has now lapsed”.

It added that the offr would have addressed challenges facing Union Jack and would have allowed shareholders to “participate in a better-capitalised platform with enhanced access to funding and a wider portfolio of assets”.

Reabold said it reserved the right to make a further offer if it were recommended by the Union Jack Board or a third party announced it intended to make an offer for Union Jack.

At the time of writing, Union Jack has not made a formal statement on the outcome of the takeover bid.

The offer, first made in June 2026, was backed by Union Jack’s then executive chairman, David Bramhill, and the company’s board. They had urged Union Jack shareholders to accept the offer.

But Mr Bramhill and two other directors were removed from the board on 24 August 2026 at a special meeting of shareholders.

They were replaced by Craig Howie and John Americanos, who opposed the Reabold takeover bid.

On 11 September 2026, in a circular to investors, the new Union Jack board recommended rejection of the offer. The board described the offer as “opportunistic” and said it “significantly undervalues Union Jack’s current project portfolio”.

Union Jack has the largest individual interest (40%) in the Wressle oil field in North Lincolnshire, PEDL180 and PEDL182.

It also has a 16.665% share in the West Newton oil and gas licence, PEDL183, in East Yorkshire and interests in PEDL5, PEDL209, PEDL241 and EXL294.

Last month, there were clashes between Union Jack and Reabold over West Newton, where there are plans for lower-volume fracking before the end of the year.

Union Jack said West Newton remained “an undeveloped gas and condensate discovery that has yet to establish sustained commercial production”. It also said “the outcome of the proposed stimulation” was not known.

Reabold Resources said it “strongly rejects” the suggestion that West Newton lacked “strategic merit”, It accused the new Union Jack board of “highly selective views” on the field.

Arizona is one signature away from its fourth national park. The Senate passed a bill by unanimous consent Wednesday to redesignate Chiricahua National Monument as a national park and sent it to President Trump’s desk.

The bill was sponsored by U.S. Representative Juan Ciscomani and U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego. It leaves the monument’s roughly 12,000-acre boundaries as they are, and it requires consultation with Tribes and continued access for traditional Tribal uses.

Local officials hope the new name will bring more tourists to a site that had just over 70,000 visitors last year. Bill Wade, executive director of the Association of National Park Rangers, said Chiricahua is “certainly worthy of national park status,” but added, “Like a lot of other areas, it is most likely understaffed.”

Some of Chiricahua’s basic needs are already on hold. A new interactive map from the Center for Western Priorities shows 1,492 Park Service projects that Interior department officials classified as “low priority.” Three of them are at Chiricahua: emergency mold abatement in occupied staff housing, replacing electrical systems in historic buildings, and security upgrades. Top-priority work was fast-tracked instead, including a $16 million effort to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool blue.

“These are the everyday projects that keep parks open and running: roof repairs, replacing outdated computers, even buying toilet paper and garbage bags. None of that is low priority. It’s the basic work of national parks,” said Lilly Bock-Brownstein of the Center for Western Priorities.

MLB drops proposal to host baseball game at Grand Teton National Park

Major League Baseball has dropped its proposal to host a game in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park. Last weekend, the Washington Post reported that a National Park Service official scouted possible sites. Local leaders then sent letters to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred expressing “strong opposition.” In a Thursday letter, Manfred wrote that “it has become clear the local community does not want us to continue evaluating Grand Teton National Park as a potential site.”

Quick hits Interior is paying $3.4M to repair the national mall’s turf

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DC judge permanently dismisses case charging ex-Olympian with vandalizing Reflecting Pool

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The Trump admin cut funding to a conservation nonprofit. The group has no idea why

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South Korea contests U.S. claims of new $50 billion pipeline in Alaska

Wall Street Journal

MLB drops proposal to host a baseball game at Grand Teton National Park

Associated Press | Washington Post | Jackson Hole News & Guide |

Conservation groups sue to halt expansion of Hermosa mine onto public lands in Arizona

Tucson Sentinel

Chiricahua National Park Act headed to President Trump may create Arizona’s fourth national park

Arizona’s Family | Arizona Daily Star | 13 News | KGUN | KVOA

4 more endangered California condors take flight near the Grand Canyon

Arizona Republic

Quote of the day

It’s very bewildering to see these cuts at a time when public interest and love for public lands is at an all-time high.”

—Peter Woodruff, executive director of the Great Basin Institute, SFGATE

Picture This @devilstowernps

While Katmai had its Fat Bear Week, here at Devils Tower we are entering our Fat Prairie Dog Week. In preparation for winter prairie dogs will also fatten up. The fatter the prairie dog the better chance it has of surviving the winter. While the prairie dogs in the park don’t hibernate, food can be scarce in the winter, so they need to pack on the pounds. Below is the fattest prairie dog we have ever seen at Devils Tower National Monument. What has been your best sighting of a plump animal? NPS/Brian C. #DevilsTower#FindYourPark

 

(Featured image: Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona. Photo by Ken Lund, Flickr)

The post Chiricahua positioned to become Arizona’s newest national park appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

DENVER—Earlier this year, National Park Service headquarters in Washington shifted about 1,500 projects, many already approved, to a new “low priority” list, the Associated Press reported in August. The projects span more than 200 sites and carry a combined cost estimate of more than $400 million. Park Service employees “were told to not expect anything on the low priority list to be contracted,” one official told the AP, and officials said almost all of the work is expected to go undone.

Meanwhile, White House priorities, including projects tied to President Donald Trump’s Freedom 250 initiative, were given a new, top-priority status. That list included the $16 million botched effort to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool blue.

“The cancelled projects are working on things that are widely popular, across partisan lines. Who doesn’t want safer water and cleaner campgrounds?” a National Park Service ranger told the Center for Western Priorities. CWP is not identifying the ranger. “So they’ll cancel projects like these that keep parks safe in order to save a few dollars, but then they turn around and spend millions in D.C. on gold-plated statues. That’s what’s more important to them, which is both appalling and un-American.”

A new interactive map from the Center for Western Priorities shows 1,492 projects designated low priority at 276 national parks and Park Service offices, drawn from an internal NPS project database. They range from roof repairs and computer upgrades to toilet paper and garbage bags. In the West, 548 projects across 12 states landed on the list, including 97 in Alaska, 90 in California, and 78 in Wyoming.

The Park Service’s repair backlog has doubled over the last decade to more than $24 billion, and the agency has lost at least a quarter of its permanent workforce under the current Trump administration.

Project records are from an internal NPS project database, updated as of late August, 2026.

Explore the map here

The Center for Western Priorities released the following statement from Center for Western Priorities Creative Content and Policy Manager Lilly Bock-Brownstein:

“These are the everyday projects that keep parks open and running: roof repairs, replacing outdated computers, even buying toilet paper and garbage bags. None of that is low priority. It’s the basic work national parks need to function.

“It is illuminating to see which repairs and purchases were pushed aside so Secretary Burgum could pay for President Trump’s vanity projects in Washington. The National Park Service is supposed to protect every park.  Instead, parks across the country are being neglected while money flows to the president’s pet projects.”

Learn more:

• National park maintenance work sidelined as Trump’s Freedom 250 takes precedence — Associated Press

• 2026 NPS Agreement Disapprovals — Center for Western Priorities

• How Burgum is helping Trump gut national parks to fund vanity projects — Center for Western Priorities

• Staffing shortages, traffic jams and a culture war: Inside the fight over America’s national parks — CNN

Featured image: Great American Outdoors Act project in Colorado National Monument. Source: NPS Flickr.

The post STATEMENT: New map shows 1,492 national park projects put on a “low priority” list appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Valar Atomics, a nuclear startup, is planning to place 456 small nuclear reactors on more than 9,000 acres of Bureau of Land Management land near Price, Utah, according to documents reviewed by NPR.

The company calls the proposal “Project Beehive.” In addition to the reactors, the site would include data centers, a facility to make nuclear fuel, and nuclear waste storage. The reactors would generate around 9.6 gigawatts of power, more than double Utah’s current average electricity output. Construction could begin by the end of this year, with the first reactors online in 2028. Valar has also sought about 650 acres of state land for the project, which the Salt Lake Tribune first reported last week.

Valar has benefited from the Trump administration’s nuclear push. Its test reactor won quick approval this year after the Energy department quietly overhauled its safety rules. Masha Bucher, whose firm co-led a $130 million funding round for Valar, is a former pro-Putin activist who worked as Jeffrey Epstein’s publicist, Mother Jones reported in February.

“If we have facilities like this on public land for waste storage, for massive nuclear development, for data centers, that’s going to have tremendous implications for how public lands are used,” said Lexi Tuddenham, executive director of the Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah.

Quick hits In less than a month, mining claims filed in Bears Ears already triple the total number filed during previous Trump reduction

Bloomberg Law | National Parks Conservation Association [press release] | Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance [press release]

Wyoming electeds unite against ‘peculiar’ Grand Teton baseball field pitch

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What’s Doug Burgum doing with Defense Production Act authority?

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NOAA scales back Endangered Species Act protections

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Reno-based organization among hardest hit by National Park Service funding cuts

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Colorado towns with bear trouble will share $1M in grants to reduce human-bear contact

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Quote of the day

With DPA authority, and a National Energy Emergency, Burgum now has everything he needs to move forward with data center construction on public lands under the guise of “national security,” without any public notice or input. The first we learn of these projects may be when they break ground.”

—Journalist Wes Siler, Wes Siler’s Newsletter

Picture This @usinterior

He got it from his mama.

Bear 89, aka Backpack, has come a long way on his journey to becoming the 2026 Fat Bear Week champion.

Born in 2006, Backpack earned his nickname as a cub when he was often seen riding on the back of his mom, Holly. She helped him survive a serious leg injury, and over the years, bear watchers have watched Backpack grow into one hefty brown bear.

Holly knows a thing or two about hefty. The Duchess of Density won Fat Bear Week herself in 2019. Now Backpack has a crown of his own.

Photo: Yearling Backpack in 2007 with a hurt foot by Ranger Jeanne

 

(Featured image: Price Canyon, Utah. Photo by Kabelleger / David Gubler, Wikimedia Commons)

The post Nuclear startup plans hundreds of reactors on Utah public land appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Submit public comment on Oregon data centers Ally Harris Wed, 09/30/2026 - 3:50 pm

New study: Oregon gas rates could rise sixfold without a plan for the energy transition Juan M. Muñoz … Wed, 09/30/2026 - 1:17 pm

Six candidates running in Meaford, Ontario’s 2026 municipal election oppose TC Energy’s proposed pumped storage project

The post Meaford Election 2026: Six Candidates Oppose TC Energy Pumped Storage Project appeared first on Ontario Clean Air Alliance.

Reabold Resources has detailed its work programme for the West Newton oil and gas field in East Yorkshire.

The majority investor in the West Newton licence today restated its plan to carry out lower-volume fracking, described as reservoir stimulation, on the West Newton-A2 well this autumn (quarter 4 2026).

In interim accounts, published today, Reabold also outlined longer-term commitments for West Newton, agreed with the industry regulator, the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA).

The company did not mention a High Court challenge by a local campaigner against the Environment Agency over permission for lower-volume fracking at West Newton. It also did not refer to an court application by the campaigner for interim injunction to prevent the start of work.

Lower volume fracking and well test

Reabold said the operation to re-enter and recomplete the West Newton-A2 well was intended to establish sustained gas flow. It said the gross cost was expected to be £2.5m, excluding Reabold’s contingency of £2.1m.

The accounts said:

“The reservoir stimulation will aim to open fractures within the reservoir and then prop the fractures open using sand. The operation is designed to restore and enhance near wellbore permeability. The JV [joint venture] partnership believes this is a low risk and low-cost approach to derisk the project.”

Reabold also said its subsidiary, the West Newton site operator, Rathlin Energy, was “in the early stage of planning an EWT (extended well test)”, if the reservoir stimulation were successful.

This would allow an assessment of the extent and performance of the reservoir, required before deciding on full field development, Reabold said.

Reabold added:

“Until the reservoir characteristics are fully understood, through an EWT, it is too early to determine the most suitable method for transporting gas to market.”

Options include pipeline connection to the national transmission system or direct supply to local industrial users, Reabold said.

Commitments

In the near term, Reabold repeated there were proposals for small-scale electricity generation at West Newton-A to supply onsite computing or data centre facilities. It said this would reduce the need for flaring, and “minimise waste and environmental impact”.

Reabold said it had agreed with the NSTA to recomplete the WNA-2 well and carry out the EWT by 30 June 2027.

Other commitments listed in the accounts were:

• Investment decision and long-term EWT/Data centre development by 30 June 2028
• Investment decision and drill horizontal well by 30 June 2029
• Test horizontal well and submit a field development plan by 30 June 2030

Fundraising

Reabold said it had raised £4.3m in the first half of 2026.

Of the total, £1.9m was from a group of US investors, including £1.5m from Rohan Oza. In addition, £1.5m was from a placing and £0.9m from direct subscriptions.

Proceeds would be used on the recompletion and lower volume frack on the A2 well at West Newton-A in East Yorkshire.

Reabold has a 69.9% economic interest in the West Newton licence PEDL183. The company has a 79.8% interest in Rathlin Energy and a 16.67% direct interest in the licence.

Sachin Oza and Stephen Williams, Co-CEOs of Reabold, said:

“In Q4 2026, we expect to commence recompletion works at the West Newton A-2 well, a pivotal step towards unlocking the full value of our flagship UK project. The support shown by new and existing investors, including from a group of US strategic investors, enabled us to raise a total of £4.3 million during the period, positioning the Company to fund Reabold and Rathlin’s share of the recompletion.

Key figures

Unaudited interim accounts for six months to 30 June 2026

Loss for six months to June 2026: £1m (First half of 2025: loss of £1.4m)

Total comprehensive loss for the period: £1.453m (First half of 2025: loss of £1.435m). Reduced loss due to £0.6m gain on sale of its 47.6% share of LNEnergy to Beacon

Total exploration and evaluation assets (onshore and offshore in UK and beyond): £29.3m. (First half of 2025: £29m)

Total liabilities: £1.104m. (First half of 2025: £1.214m)

Decommissioning provision for West Newton: £0.8m (31 December 2025: £0.7m)

Net cash or operating activities: £0.9m (30 June 2025: £0.9m)

The new board of Union Jack Oil has repeated its recommendation to shareholders to reject the takeover bid by Reabold Resources.

The offer period expires at 1pm on Friday 2 October.

Craig Howie
Photo: Craig Howie, LinkedIn

The executive chairman, Craig Howie, appointed at a special meeting last month (August 2026) urged shareholders to take no action and not to return Reabold’s acceptance form.

He said the new board, also comprising John Americanos, “continues to unanimously and unequivocally reject the offer”.

In Union Jack’s interim half-year accounts, published on 29 September 2026, he said:

“The new board believes that the offer does not represent fair value for the company, nor does it represent an adequate premium for ceding control to Reabold.”

Mr Howie said Reabold’s acceptance condition currently requires valid acceptances of not less than 75% of Union Jack shares by the revised unconditional date (2 October 2026).

Last week, Union Jack reported it had received irrevocable undertakings and letters of intent not to accept the offer from approximately 24.39% of the company’s existing issued ordinary share capital.

The most recent takeover statement from Reabold reports that at 1pm on 29 September 2026 the company had received acceptances of the offer from investors holding approximately 6.8% of the Union Jack capital.

Mr Howie also said the company’s priority was now to review Union Jack’s asset portfolio and central cost base, particularly directors’ remuneration.

He said three new non-executive directors were due to be announced next month (October 2026). The company also had a new team of restructuring and technical advisors, Mr Howie said.

Key figures for the six months ending 30 June 2026

Oil and gas revenues (UK and overseas): £1.56m (six months to 30 June 2025: £1.28m)

Cost of sales – operating costs: £0.776m (six months to 30 June 2025: £0.645m)

Gross profit: £0.56m (six months to 30 June 2025: £0.45m)

Operating loss: £0.941m (six months to 30 June 2025: £0.603m)

Net loss before impairment: £0.42m (2025: £489,674)

Loss before taxation: £0.896m (six months to 30 June 2025: £0.489m)

Total assets: £19m (six months to 30 June 2025: £23.543m)

Total liabilities: £3.07m (six months to 30 June 2025: £2.162m)

Net assets: £15.933m (2025: £21.381m)

Closing net cash: £0.52m (accounting for £1m loan from Egdon Resources)