April, in brief

Key news from April:

• The United States Senate voted 52-42 to restore regulations that impose limits on methane leaks from oil and gas activities. Lawmakers used the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to nullify the efforts by the Trump administration to undo the Obama-era regulation to limit methane leaks—essentially acting to repeal a previous repeal. The CRA can be used within 60 legislative days of a rule's enactment and requires only a simple majority vote, making it the swiftest way to overturn an existing federal rule. Limiting methane emissions is a key part of the Biden administration's pledge to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50% before 2030. 
• The American Stewards of Liberty, a Texas-based group with a history of anti-government, anti-public lands ideology has convinced at least four Colorado counties—with incomplete or outright false information—to oppose the proposal to protect 30% of America's lands and waters, commonly known as the 30x30 goal. The group has pushed misinformation about a private lands takeover as part of the federal government's 30x30 effort. However, both the government and groups supporting the initiative have been explicit that landowner rights and strictly voluntary private land conservation are key to success.
• President Biden unveiled an ambitious $2.3 trillion proposal to update our nation's infrastructure. While the plan focuses on traditional transportation projects, such as roads, bridges, and transit, it also proposes major investments in shifting towards clean energy and cleaning up existing fossil fuel development. Biden's plan proposes investing $16 billion to plug abandoned oil and gas wells and reclaimed abandoned mines, many of which are found on public lands. Lawmakers and advocates have also called for stronger bonding requirements for oil and gas companies that drill on public lands, as well as changes to bankruptcy law that make it harder for companies to evade responsibility for cleaning up old sites.
• The Interior Department announced the first dispersement of funds related to the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, which will invest $1.6 billion in 165 projects across the country. The law permanently funded the Land and Water Conservation Fund and allocated resources to address the maintenance backlog on public lands.
• Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments where she met with stakeholders to discuss the restoration of the monuments whose boundaries were slashed by the Trump administration. While Haaland has stated that she will hear from "all sides" on this issue, the majority of Utahns—74%—agree that the boundaries of these monuments should be restored. It is widely expected that President Biden will restore protections for these monuments.
• The Biden administration released its 2022 budget proposal for the Interior Department. The initial budget request of $17.4 billion is 16.3% higher than the department's enacted fiscal 2021 funding level. The budget proposal highlights the administration's climate, jobs, and conservation priorities.
• Interior Secretary Deb Haaland revoked more than a dozen Trump administration policies aimed at increasing drilling and mining on public lands, stating they were "inconsistent with our commitment to protect public health, conserve land, water and wildlife, and elevate science." Among the policies revoked were Secretarial Orders directing the Interior Department to expand offshore drilling, evaluate drilling opportunities in Alaska's National Wildlife Refuge, increase coal mining leases on public lands, reduce reviews for oil and gas leasing across the West, and limit reviews under the National Historic Preservation Act. In a separate order, Haaland established a new Climate Task Force aimed at coordinating the Interior Department's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase renewable energy generation, and prioritize environmental justice. 

What to watch for in May:

• The Biden administration plans to release a report on the national goal of protecting 30% of America's lands and waters by 2030. The Executive Order signed by President Biden in January on tackling the climate crisis included the 30x30 goal and called for the report within 90 days. An Interior spokesperson said, "The Interior Department is on track to deliver the report to the National Climate Task Force on time and looks forward to sharing the report with the public in the coming weeks."
• Confirmation hearings and votes for additional Interior Department nominees, including Tommy Beaudreau for Interior Deputy Secretary. Beaudreau served as the first director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, in addition to Interior chief of staff. The Biden administration nominated Tracy Stone-Manning as the next Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Stone-Manning has spent decades advocating for public land conservation as a senior executive at the National Wildlife Federation, chief of staff for Montana Governor Steve Bullock, and as an advisor to Montana Senator Jon Tester. The nomination drew widespread praise on Capitol Hill, including from New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich, who called her a "rock star who understands the access issues that are so important to the identity of Western Americans."
• May is Asian-American and Pacific Islander heritage month, a time when the National Park Service and other agencies emphasize and celebrate the contributions of Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders to our shared American history. 

Established by Congress in 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has funded hundreds of thousands of conservation projects across the country. Now, there’s an interactive map created by the Trust for Public Land that lets you explore where they all are. Source: https://lwcf.tplgis.org/mappast/