News Feeds

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s ties to the Yellowstone Club stretch back nearly two decades, Center for Western Priorities Communications Director Kate Groetzinger writes in a new Westwise post, and raise questions about whether he represents the best interests of the public.

The Yellowstone Club, which sits on land that was once public, and its owners are notorious in Montana for locking up public lands through land swaps with the federal government. The club’s member list includes celebrities and tech titans, like Justin Timberlake and Bill Gates. Financial disclosure and property records show that Burgum owns a condominium inside the club valued at $22 million as well as an ownership stake in the club, generating annual income from both.

Burgum’s financial stake in a resort with a long history of disputes over public-land access, land swaps, and development raises serious ethical concerns. Former White House ethics lawyer Richard Painter said Burgum should not be involved in decisions affecting residential development on public lands while retaining an ownership stake in the Yellowstone Club.

And while Burgum’s office says he has complied with federal ethics requirements, legal compliance is beside the point: the man charged with stewarding America’s public lands should not have significant financial interests tied to a luxury resort that has repeatedly benefited from locking the public out of public lands.

Quick hits Why is Brooke Rollins dead set on saving a failing California dam?

Grist

Cuts trigger scientific brain drain as Trump reshapes government

E&E News

Forest Service offers separation incentives to employees ahead of relocations

Federal News Network

New bill would block public lands layoffs until 2030

GearJunkie

Forest Service and state of South Dakota sign agreement to work together on forest management

South Dakota Searchlight

Federal firefighting change-ups and this summer’s forecast are a bad mix, advocates say

Utah News Dispatch

Opinion: Why we are suing Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks

Billings Gazette

At Delta Lake, AI mogging TikTok

Jackson Hole News & Guide

Quote of the day

Every public acre locked away from public access is an acre lost to the next generation of Montana hunters and anglers… So we’re asking the court to provide what FWP would not: clarity, accountability, and a path back to the public land that belongs to everyone. Now—and for all who come after us.”

—Montana Backcountry Hunters & Anglers and Public Land/Water Access Association, Billings Gazette

Picture This

@Interior

The NBA Finals have Wemby.

America’s public lands have these giants.

Feature image: A condo at the Yellowstone Club that was listed for sale for $22 million in 2020. Source: Mountain Living

The post The Secretary of the Interior has a Yellowstone Club problem appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

DENVER—U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz appeared in front of a House Natural Resources subcommittee Thursday to defend the Trump administration’s downsizing of his agency and answer questions about the upcoming wildfire season.

Schultz defended the Trump administration’s unpopular staffing cuts to the Forest Service, which have resulted in a massive gap in wildfire prevention work heading into the summer wildfire season, as well as the administration’s move to shutter research stations across the U.S.

Since President Donald Trump took office, the Forest Service has lost around 16 percent of its staff—a total loss of 5,860 employees—including “red card” holders who are authorized to assist in wildfire efforts. Meanwhile, according to a Center for Western Priorities analysis of publicly available data, the Forest Service treated roughly 35 percent fewer acres of forest for wildfire in 2025 compared to 2024.

Schultz also defended the administration’s efforts to aggressively ramp up logging in national forests and repeal the Roadless Rule, which currently protects 45 million acres of national forest land from clear-cutting, road-building, mining, and oil and gas drilling.

Research has found that high-severity wildfires are almost two times more likely to occur on private industrial forest lands than on adjacent public lands. Meanwhile, the Roadless Rule does not preclude fuels reduction work. Since the Roadless Rule took effect in 2001, nearly 2 million acres of inventoried roadless areas across 12 western states have been treated for hazardous fuels.

Schultz also defended the administration’s aggressive strategy of putting all wildfires out as soon as possible after they begin, constraining fire managers from making the call based on available resources and expertise. This approach, known as full or total suppression, has been shown by science to increase long-term wildfire risk.

Finally, the Trump administration is currently proposing a cut of 75 percent to the overall Forest Service budget, including the complete elimination of the agency’s research program.

The Center for Western Priorities released the following statement from Deputy Director Lauren Bogard:

“The Trump administration continues to treat our national forests like assets on a balance sheet, prioritizing timber industry profits over responsible, science-backed management.

“In today’s hearing, members of Congress and Chief Schultz seemed convinced that we can log our way out of wildfires by ramping up commercial logging, which actually increases wildfire risk, according to science.

“Meanwhile, the Trump administration has fallen way behind on the targeted fuel reduction treatments that actually reduce wildfire risk, leaving communities across the country more exposed to the risk of catastrophic wildfire.”

Learn more:

• Falling behind: Forest Service fuel treatment gap puts communities at risk – Center for Western Priorities
• As admin claws at national forests, what will become of the Forest Service? – Wilderness Society

The post STATEMENT on Forest Service hearing in House Natural Resources subcommittee today appeared first on Center for Western Priorities.

Holy Cross Energy CEO Bryan Hannegan said the utility plans to expand its programs for smart electrification and demand flexibility, and selectively add new flexible renewable resources.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 4, 2026

Statement on ACT NOW Clean Tech Initiative

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — On June 4, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato signed the Advancing Clean Technology for Neighborhood and Next-Generation Opportunity and Workforce (ACT NOW) Executive Order. In response, Ohio River Valley Institute Industrial Decarbonization Program Manager Justine Hackimer issued the following statement:

Clean technology and advanced manufacturing present a generational opportunity to strengthen Allegheny County’s economy, create high-quality jobs, and build on our region’s long history of industrial innovation. 

For generations, southwestern Pennsylvania’s workers, manufacturers, and research institutions helped power economic growth across the country. As global markets increasingly demand cleaner technologies, our region is well-positioned to compete for the industries that will shape the next generation of manufacturing. 

But realizing that opportunity requires more than individual projects. It takes coordination and smart policy like ACT NOW to ensure workers and local communities directly benefit from investments. We applaud County Executive Sara Innamorato’s leadership in shaping a clean tech future that works for all Pennsylvanians.

By investing in the industries of tomorrow while strengthening the systems that support workers and communities, the region can build a more diverse, resilient economy that creates opportunities for generations to come.

###

 

The post Statement on ACT NOW Clean Tech Initiative appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

In this issue:

Intro: May Action Night / Volunteer for Election Work /Energy Justice Team / Protect Portland’s Climate Justice Fund / Portland Budget Update / Forest Defense Team / Arts Team / Data Centers: Good News / Welcome Summer Interns / Book Club / SW Team / Brooklyn Action Team / Washington County Team / Rumble on the River / Venmo, Totes, & Stickers – Oh My!

Thanks to all of you, we had an illuminating and inspiring May 21 Candidate Meet & Greet Action Night, our first event in the 2026 Vote for Climate Justice campaign! 15 candidates from Districts 3 and 4 attended. Each candidate briefly shared about their climate priorities, and at least 80 Portlanders circulated at their tables to learn more. Ten candidates have fully endorsed our Climate Justice Platform, and one has endorsed parts of it. Scroll to the bottom of this page to see if your preferred candidates have endorsed it.

Visit our news page to see Action Night photos by 350PDX volunteer Dana Schot, as well as video of each candidate’s speech.

Volunteer for Election Work

We’re recruiting volunteers to support our District 3 & 4 city council election work. Whether you can table at an event, assist with candidate forums, do outreach in your neighborhood, or lend a hand behind the scenes, there is a role for you in this pivotal moment for climate justice in Portland! Sign up at 350pdx.org/volunteer or email us at info@350pdx.org.

And, if you know of events in D3 or D4 that 350PDX should attend, please share with info@350pdx.org!

Energy Justice Team

350PDX’s newest campaign team, the Energy Justice Team, has fully launched! We’re working on everything from protecting PCEF to fighting for safety in the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub, from stopping Zenith and data centers to advocating for transportation justice. Join us! We meet on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month from 6:00-7:30 PM, rotating between virtual and in person. Our next meeting is Tuesday, June 9 at 6:00 PM on Zoom. To get the link or sign up for an orientation, reach out to team leaders Dineen and Cherice: dineen@350pdx.org, cherice@350pdx.org

THIS WEEK: Join us at the Toxic Roots of the Silicon Forest Conference, hosted by Portland Jobs with Justice! The conference takes place at Portland State University, and begins tonight (Wednesday) evening with a film screening and continues all day tomorrow (Thursday). Come explore the legacy of the semiconductor and microchip industry (the backbone of AI…), discuss its impact in our own backyard, and plant the seeds for a more equitable and sustainable future. Get tickets here.

PCEF to Police? Protect Portland’s climate justice fund!

Portland police and wealthy special interests are gathering signatures for a ballot measure to raid the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund (PCEF), diverting 25% of it to the police. Portlanders can:

• Decline to sign measures you don’t support.

• Share concerns with friends and family.

• Sign the Protect PCEF pledge.

• Learn more

Ethics violations have been filed against those who filed this ballot measure, alleging they are training signature gatherers to mislead the public about the purpose of the measure. See this story in the Portland Mercury for more info. Here is the text of the petition.

Portland Budget Update

14 Tree Protection Jobs Saved!

Major thanks to everyone who contacted their council members and submitted testimony in support of our city tree budget for long-term cooling. Councilor Koyama Lane’s amendment to restore 14 (mostly PCEF-funded) urban forestry and tree permitting jobs passed 8-4. See vote results here; search for “urban forestry.” Consider dropping your councilor a note.

Through our advocacy together, a budget amendment to fund the fire engine that serves Linnton and the CEI hub also passed, and the budget includes two new positions in the Office of Sustainability. Unfortunately, some PCEF money was diverted; stay tuned to see if more advocacy will help before the budget is finalized.

Forest Defense Team

Stop by 350PDX’s Shade Equity table at Columbia Slough Watershed Council’s Annual Slough Celebration, Saturday June 13, 2:00-6:00 PM, 1880 Northeast Elrod Drive.

Would you like to co-host a tree walk in your neighborhood? Reach out to Noelle@350pdx.org.

Arts Team Because of a conflict with the No Kings event on June 14, our June Artbuild will be postponed. Watch for an email with more information and new June Artbuild date! We’ll be planning for the NW Climate Week in July, and an Oregon Wild event in August. Stay tuned! Donna, Lauren, Dannika, and Ali Data Centers—Good News about the POWER Act!

Data centers have swooped into the state and are charged less than half of what residential customers pay, while drawing immense amounts of power. That is about to change! Due to the POWER Act, which 350PDX helped advocate for in the 2025 legislative session, Oregon’s Public Utility Commission is requiring PGE to charge data centers more, reducing the burden on regular ratepayers. Learn more.

Welcome Summer Interns

We’re excited to welcome two summer interns. Natalie Severson is a third year Reed College student majoring in political science and sociology. Her main focus will be PCEF, and helping organize our District 4 tabling opportunities and candidate forum. Owen Wegner just graduated from Reed (congratulations, Owen!) with a degree in environmental studies and a concentration in political science. He’ll be helping develop our Climate Justice Scorecard and organizing our District 3 tabling and candidate forum.

Book Club

The 350PDX Book Club meets every month on the first Wednesday of the month at 6:30 PM. Every other month is in-person and the others are virtual. Reach out to books@350PDX.org with any questions or to join our list, and please RSVP so we can inform you of any meeting changes.

Join us on Wednesday, June 3 at 6:30 PM for our next non-fiction in-person meeting. We’ll discuss Eight Bears: Mythic Past and Imperiled Future by Gloria Dickie, a global exploration of the eight remaining species of bears―and the dangers they face. RSVP at books@350PDX.org.

Save the date for our other upcoming discussions:

• Wednesday, July 1 at 6:30 PM (Google Meet) – Book to be selected in June

• Wednesday, August 5 at 6:30 PM (In Person) – Book to be selected soon

• Voting starts soon for our next batch of books! Email us your suggestions.

Do you like to talk about books and climate justice? We are seeking volunteers to help facilitate! Contact books@350PDX.org to learn more.

Southwest Neighborhood Team

The Southwest Neighborhood Team includes neighborhoods on the south and west sides of Portland. We work together to raise awareness of the climate emergency.

A big thank you to our volunteers for supporting our kiosk at SW Sunday Parkways on Sunday, May 17. Your efforts resulted in big gains for our SW Neighborhood Team. We signed up 40 people who were interested in the District 4 candidate forum. We gave out 18 Climate Action Yard Signs to community members willing to raise awareness about the climate crisis, and we are quickly gaining ground on efforts to reign in data center expansion in Oregon. Photo: Matt Austin

Our street corner demonstrations continue weekly in June and July, every Friday from 3:00-4:00 PM at SW Garden Home & SW Oleson Rd. Street parking is available or reach us via bus or bike. We may make adjustments to our gathering time to accommodate our volunteers. We are suspending our monthly Zoom team meetings for June and July. We will resume meetings on the third Monday in August (Monday, August 17th, 2026, at 6:30 PM).

To get involved, please contact Pat Kaczmarek at patk5@msn.com.

Brooklyn Climate Action Team (BCAT) 

BCAT is heading into a busy summer. Our popular Go-Bag Series returns June 9, June 23, and July 7 at 7:30 PM at Brooklyn School Park (near Winterhaven Elementary School) — a community favorite for building emergency preparedness alongside neighbors. Whether you’re refreshing an existing kit or starting from scratch, come join us!

We’ve also been busy this spring: last month, neighbors gathered for BCAT’s first Climate Action Writing Night, putting pen to paper on letters to representatives urging protection of our National Forests.

See our full calendar here.

Washington County Team

We are super excited to see last year’s successful community event moving forward in partnership with The City of Hillsboro, the Westside Planet Alliance, and Hillsboro Saturday Farmers market, with sponsorship from PGE.

Please join us for year *TWO* of our event:

Westside Sustainable Living Fair
July 18 | 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM  2nd Avenue between Main and Lincoln Streets, Downtown Hillsboro

Explore interactive exhibits, hands-on games and activities, giveaways, prize drawings, and local resources focused on clean energy, electric vehicles, water conservation, urban forestry, waste reduction, watershed health, wildlife-friendly gardening, and more. The Fair is adjacent to the downtown Hillsboro Farmers Market, which features fresh local produce and goods, prepared food, and sustainable products. Visit PGE’s Ride & Drive experience on 3rd Avenue between Main and Washington Streets in the Heritage Bank parking lot where you can learn about and test drive a number of electric vehicle options.

Our group will NOT meet online in June.  Our next gathering will be in person for a summer picnic in conjunction with the July 18 event. We always welcome newcomers to our events and to our monthly online meetings (6:30 PM on the second Tuesday of the month). For the link, join us here or contact us at 350washco@gmail.com.

Rumble on the River: Building Community For The Long Haul 

In response to the disheartening onslaught against democracy, humanity, and life on our planet, we come together for inspirations, ideas and actions that will energize us to create a humane and supportive community. Come learn what other neighborhoods and networks are doing and how you can get engaged.

Tuesday, June 16

St Andrew Catholic Church (806 NE Alberta St)

Doors and Info Tables at 5:30 PM, Panel at 6:30 PM

350PDX is on Venmo! @Climate-350pdx

The first 35 people to donate any amount to us on Venmo will receive a screen-printed tote bag & a new Vote for Climate Justice sticker—designed by 350PDX volunteer Joaquin Moore! All donations will support grassroots climate justice advocacy. Donate here! 

Thank you for reading our monthly newsletter. We hope to see you soon!

With gratitude,

Cherice, Dineen, Irene, Jessica, and Noelle

The post 2026 June Newsletter! appeared first on 350PDX: Climate Justice.

There’s something uniquely thrilling about a cross-country road trip—especially when someone else is paying for the gas. But to spend time on the road with a friend, sharing new experiences and...

After Bill Pulte’s appointment, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) has conspicuously failed to join the chorus of Democrats and Republicans calling for reforms to FISA that would protect privacy and democracy itself. Pulte’s history of weaponizing the government against President Donald Trump’s political enemies was jarring enough to move previous opponents of FISA privacy protections, like Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), to explicitly call for “reforms to ensure Americans’ privacy and rights are protected.” On the other hand, Warner, who is negotiating with Republicans and the Trump administration to renew FISA, has only commented on how bad Pulte is and notably stopped short of saying anything about FISA reform. This is particularly telling considering Warner’s history of promising future reforms to get FISA renewed and failing to deliver.

The following is a statement from Demand Progress Executive Director Sean Vitka:

“Sen. Warner’s opposition to Bill Pulte masks the fact that he is still the Democrats’ chief advocate for handing over unchecked spying powers to the Trump administration. Pulte obviously must go, but he’s also proof that this administration is eager and willing to use the Office of the Director of National Intelligence as a weapon. If Trump pulls Pulte, he can easily appoint another eager goon to fill the slot. By focusing on Pulte and not broader reforms, Sen. Warner is not standing up for Americans or the Constitution, he is disguising his work to engineer warrantless mass surveillance against us. We know this because he’s been doing it publicly for months. An unprecedented, bipartisan movement is demanding privacy reforms but Sen. Warner’s machinations threaten to derail this progress and hand Trump the surveillance powers he needs to threaten Americans and democracy itself for the rest of his administration.”

A robust set of resources on the need for privacy reforms for FISA are available here and here, and additional background, context, polling, reform demands, resources and other information is available here. A video on Pulte from Jessica Craven can be found here and a sample of the ways FISA has been used to wrongfully target protesters, journalists, politicians and others is available here.

Lydia Larce has what she calls “storm PTSD.”

There’s no way to sugarcoat it: Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is under attack. 

The elected officials behind 2025’s failed public lands sell-off attempts – Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) and Rep. Celeste Maloy (R-UT-02) – introduced a joint resolution to undo the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Management Plan using the Congressional Review Act (CRA). 

If both chambers of Congress pass the measure by simple majority votes, the plan – which sets expectations for how these remarkable public lands will be managed for recreation, camping and outdoor access, collaboration with Tribal Nations, dark night skies, grazing, and other uses – will be undone and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will be barred from issuing another plan that is “substantially the same” in the future. This would be a devastating blow to the monument and could turn it into a wildly different place. We cannot let this happen. 

View our StoryMap and learn more

Here are ways you can join us and fight back: 

• Visit our action page and email your members of Congress, telling them to vote NO on the joint resolution. 

• Reach out to your friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues who you know also love the redrock, Grand Staircase-Escalante, and southern Utah. Send them a link to our action alert and encourage them to join our email list too!

• Share this action on social media – be sure to tag our accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and TikTok. 

• Call your Representative and both of your Senators (find office numbers here), saying something along the lines of: “Hi my name is _____, and I’m a constituent from ______. I am calling to urge you to vote NO on the Congressional Review Act Resolution targeting the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument management plan.  The monument — a crown jewel of America’s public lands and a place like nowhere else in the world — should be protected for its rich biodiversity, unique geology, and remarkable cultural values. The resolution to disapprove the plan puts everything that is special about Grand Staircase-Escalante at risk. Please vote NO. Thank you.”

• If you live outside of Utah, reach out to a member of SUWA’s Grassroots Organizing Team to get more involved and find out if your member of Congress is one who could cast a deciding vote.  

• View and share our Grand Staircase-Escalante StoryMap.

• Watch our recent Virtual Rally for Grand Staircase-Escalante and learn about ways to take effective action from wherever you live.

• If you’re able, consider financially supporting SUWA. Our members and supporters make our work possible. 

• If you’re looking for another way to participate, we encourage you to get creative! We’re seeking artistic works for use in an interactive map for Grand Staircase-Escalante. Create something new or share a piece you’ve already made. This can range from short stories about your experiences in the monument, to quick sketches, to your favorite photographs! Email files to loveforgse@suwa.org. 

For over 40 years, SUWA and the nationwide Protect Wild Utah movement have worked tirelessly to protect wilderness-quality lands, including the monument. That work continues, undeterred.  Thank you for standing with us at this critical moment.  

 

View Our “Love for Grand Staircase-Escalante” StoryMap of Art Submissions

The post Actions You Can Take to Defend Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument appeared first on Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.

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