** A win for sage-grouse
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Thursday, October 17, 2019
Thomas Barnes, USFWS ([link removed])

A federal judge on Wednesday blocked the Trump administration's attempt to remove protections for the sage-grouse ([link removed]) on millions of acres of public land across the West. Judge B. Lynn Winmill issued an injunction reinstating the Obama-era plan that banned or limited oil and gas drilling on 10.7 million acres of key sage-grouse habitat.

The ruling is temporary, but Judge Winmill found ([link removed]) that the conservation groups that brought the lawsuit are likely to prevail. He added that the injunction was necessary because the Trump administration's actions were “designed to open up more land to oil, gas, and mineral extraction as soon as possible. That was the expressed intent of the Trump Administration and then-Secretary Ryan Zinke. There is no indication that current Secretary David Bernhardt is proceeding at any slower pace.”


** Pendley says the quiet part out loud
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William Perry Pendley, the acting head of the Bureau of Land Management, admitted to Bloomberg Environment ([link removed]) that decisions under the National Environmental Policy Act should be made in Washington, DC, not locally. That undermines the administration's previous rationale for dismantling BLM's Washington headquarters, so employees could be closer to the lands they manage. Pendley now says any updates to local BLM management plans are “not a local decision.”

Pendley's interview confirms suspicions among BLM retirees that the purpose of the BLM headquarters move is to consolidate authority with political appointees in Washington, while cutting career civil servants out of the decision-making process.
Quick hits


** Judge blocks Trump administration sage-grouse plans
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New York Times ([link removed]) | Bloomberg Environment ([link removed]) | Courthouse News ([link removed])


** Acting BLM chief says public lands decisions are best made in DC, undermining previous position
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Bloomberg Environment ([link removed])


** Pendley cashed in on legal nonprofit before joining BLM
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E&E News ([link removed])


** Study will look at shuttles, reservations to reduce crowding at Arches National Park
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])


** Will coal plant's closure restore air and views around the Grand Canyon?
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Arizona Republic ([link removed]) (Photos ([link removed]) )


** Ammon Bundy defends antigovernment follower convicted of $45M real estate fraud that paid for "sexy horror movie" and burger franchise
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])


** Opinion: Trump administration rushes to lease off Nevada
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Nevada Independent ([link removed])


** Colorado high school students reflect on conservation at 13,000 feet
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Post Independent ([link removed])
Quote of the day
What’s the point of moving the BLM people to Grand Junction so that decision making is closer to the West if the decisions are going to be made at the department? It makes no sense.”
—Mary Jo Rugwell
Former BLM Wyoming state director
Bloomberg Environment ([link removed])
Picture this


** @NatlParkService ([link removed])
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Rare image of an elk grazing in a beautiful meadow and stepping on a lego.⁣

📸: Bull elk bugling with fall foliage at @YellowstoneNPS ([link removed])
NPS/Neal Herbert⁣

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