** Trump administration proposes $1.5 billion subsidy to uranium producers
------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, February 14, 2020
Citadel Ruins in Bears Ears National Monument. Source: @BLMUtah ([link removed])
U.S. uranium production dropped to a 70-year low in 2018 ([link removed]) , but that could change if Congress approves the President's budget request to prop up the domestic uranium production industry by spending $150 million annually ([link removed]) over a ten-year period to establish a uranium reserve. Critics are decrying the reserve as a subsidy for a declining industry with an acutely toxic legacy in the southwestern United States that continues to impact the health of communities today.
One of the proponents of the reserve is Energy Fuels Resources, a uranium mining company with operations in Utah that was instrumental in advocating for the reduction of Bears Ears National Monument ([link removed]) . Incidentally, Energy Fuels Resources is a former client of Andrew Wheeler, the current Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
According to emails revealed in a Freedom of Information Act request ([link removed]) , Mr. Wheeler requested a meeting with his former client and Interior Secretary David Bernhardt to discuss a boundary adjustment to Bears Ears ([link removed]) just before the Trump administration announced the national monuments review ([link removed]) , showing that once again, David Bernhardt's former lobbyist fingerprints are all over another secret sweetheart deal for an extractive industry client.
Quick hits
** University offers degree in outdoor recreation industry studies to support the growing industry in Colorado
------------------------------------------------------------
Colorado Sun ([link removed])
** Interior welcomes anti-public lands zealots despite rhetoric from leadership opposing land transfers
------------------------------------------------------------
Huffington Post ([link removed])
** Trump administration proposes $1.5 billion subsidy to domestic uranium producers
------------------------------------------------------------
Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
** Wyoming legislature considers a bill to penalize utility companies for renewable energy investments
------------------------------------------------------------
Casper Star Tribune ([link removed])
** Opinion: Speculative leasing is harmful to public lands that support outdoor recreation in Utah
------------------------------------------------------------
Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
** Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe reintroduces bighorn sheep to historic habitat on tribal lands in Nevada
------------------------------------------------------------
High Country News ([link removed])
** Butte, Montana, formerly "America's copper capitol," finally reaches deal to clean up Superfund site
------------------------------------------------------------
Washington Post ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])
** Opinion: Legislative achievements are necessary for creating a lasting conservation legacy
------------------------------------------------------------
Durango Herald ([link removed])
Quote of the day
The United States doesn’t need additional uranium. This is a ploy to avoid the inevitable. There isn’t demand for the product; there hasn’t been for decades. They [uranium producers] want to protect their bottom line with taxpayer dollars.”
—Amber Reimondo ([link removed]) , Grand Canyon Trust
Picture this
** ([link removed]) @ ([link removed]) BLM ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
A Greater sage-grouse courtship dance. #HappyValentine'sDay from blm.gov
============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Medium ([link removed])
Copyright © 2020 Center for Western Priorities, All rights reserved.
You've signed up to receive Look West updates.
Center for Western Priorities
820 16th Street
Suite 450
Denver, CO 80202
USA
** View this on the web ([link removed])
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
