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Last week, a federal judge in Montana ousted William Perry Pendley from his position of acting Bureau of Land Management director, ruling he had served illegally for more than a year. While the implications of the sweeping ruling are still being understood, the case could undermine a vast range of recently-enacted policies designed to expand drilling and mining on public lands.
The Montana ruling specifically identifies two controversial land use plans for nullification—plans Pendley helped craft that decrease conservation protections and open vast areas in the state to drilling. There are at least 6 other land use plans around the West that meet the same criteria and could be overturned, including plans to expand mining access in lands cut from Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and expand drilling in scenic southwestern Colorado.
A broader interpretation of the ruling could threaten major priorities in the Trump administration's drill everywhere agenda, from drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to rolling back sage-grouse protections. Nada Culver, an attorney at the National Audubon Society, called the ruling a "tsunami," saying, "The court’s reasoning makes it pretty clear that a lot of the activities that Mr. Pendley has been involved in have now been invalidated."
Instead of appointing a legitimate acting director, Interior Secretary Bernhardt will personally lead the BLM, according to an email obtained by The Hill. Such a move will likely accelerate the Trump administration's efforts to bypass career BLM officials and centralize decisions on public land management in a small group of political officials in Washington.
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This Palisade Plunge is not just a trail. It’s a good representation of how federal agencies, local municipalities, nonprofits and state agencies like CPW can come together to provide outdoor recreation to an entire community.”
