** Build Back Better will be back in January
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Thursday, December 23, 2021
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. S ([link removed]) enate Democrats, Flickr ([link removed])

Senate Democrats are forging ahead with plans to pass the Build Back Better Act, or at least parts of it. Senator Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told his fellow Democrats ([link removed]) that he plans to bring a modified version of the bill back for a vote in January.

According to MSNBC ([link removed]) , Senator Joe Manchin joined Democrats on a call about the legislative package Tuesday night. But E&E reports ([link removed]) that Manchin has "continued to defend his position."

“I know we are all frustrated at this outcome. However, we are not giving up on BBB. Period. We won’t stop working on it until we pass a bill,” Schumer said in the meeting, according to a Democratic source.

Schumer's plan is to bring the bill back with slight variations, according to E&E News ([link removed]) . That would include "a still-to-be-finalized compromise with Manchin on how to implement a methane fee," but would "scrap the House measure’s permanent ban on all drilling in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and off the Gulf of Mexico."

In the meantime, Representative Pramila Jayapal, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, is doubling down ([link removed]) on her calls for President Biden to use executive authority to accomplish some of Democrats' goals, such as reforming the federal oil and gas leasing system and tightening methane rules ([link removed]) . In a statement ([link removed]) , Jayapal told reporters that her caucus is planning to “release a comprehensive vision” for Biden's executive strategy, with a focus on climate action.


** New podcast: The story of Valle de Oro
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We're excited to bring you the story of Valle de Oro ([link removed]) —a 570-acre wildlife refuge outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico—as part of our Road to 30: Postcards series.

When the Valley Gold dairy farm shut down in 2010, a coalition of neighbors got together to petition the federal government to buy the farm and turn it into a wildlife refuge in order to preserve open space and keep industrial development out. Amazingly, it worked. Now, Valle de Oro is the first urban wildlife refuge in the country, as well as the only wildlife refuge with an explicit environmental justice mandate.

Listen to this episode of The Landscape ([link removed]) to hear the story behind the creation of the refuge from people who were there: David Barber of Friends of Valle de Oro and Richard Moore of the Los Jardines Institute. Plus, hear from Valle de Oro refuge manager, Jennifer Owen-White, who is overseeing the transformation of the former dairy into ecologically valuable habitat.


** Happy Holidays!
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The Center for Western Priorities will be taking a break to enjoy our Western public lands and spend time with family over the next week and a half. We'll be back in your inbox on Tuesday, January 4. Thanks for reading Look West! We appreciate you.
Quick hits


** Montana opens wolf trapping around the state
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8 KPAX ([link removed])


** Colorado adopts stricter methane rules
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Denver Post ([link removed])


** Increase in outdoor recreation strains emergency services in rural Utah
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KUER ([link removed])


** Taylor Energy to pay over $400 million for longest running oil leak
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New York Times ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed])


** Water shortages force sports teams in the West to adjust
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Associated Press ([link removed])


** Schumer promises January vote on Build Back Better
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MSNBC ([link removed]) | E ([link removed]) &E News ([link removed])


** Plan to protect 114,000 acres of public land in Montana moves forward
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Flathead Beacon ([link removed])


** Plan to build a luxury golf course in the Utah desert is finally dead
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Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
Quote of the day
Moving BLM’s headquarters wasn’t designed to solve a real problem. Just as Reagan before him, Trump was happy to throw public employees under the bus in the name of the angry anti-government philosophy that still animates party leaders in Washington today.”
—Representative Raúl Grijalva, House Natural Resources Committee chair, T ([link removed]) he Hill ([link removed])
Picture this


** @N ([link removed]) WF ([link removed])
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When Winter Hunger Strikes ❄️
Do you know what a group of elk are called? A gang, no really! 😱
A male bull elk’s antlers may reach 4 feet above its head, so that the animal towers 9 feet tall. 📸: NPS/ Jacob W. Frank

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