Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** A stream access victory in New Mexico
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Wednesday, March 2, 2022
Backcountry Hunters and Anglers ([link removed])
Anglers and paddlers won a major victory ([link removed]) at the New Mexico Supreme Court on Tuesday, as justices ruled a state game commission rule that allowed land owners to block access to streams was unconstitutional.
A coalition of rafting, fishing, and conservation groups argued ([link removed]) that the public has a constitutional right to fish and boat on streams as long as people don't trespass across private land. The New Mexico Game Commission had crafted a rule in 2018 that allowed land owners to put up "no trespassing" signs and construct gates across streams.
It took justices 15 minutes to reach their unanimous decision. The ruling was hailed by Senator Martin Heinrich, who had filed a "friend of the court brief" along with his former colleague, Senator Tom Udall.
“This is a huge victory for people who care about our history and our culture and our natural resources,” Heinrich said ([link removed]) . “I want to thank everyone who made this possible to make sure that public waters stay in public hands.”
** Climate crisis gets short shrift during SOTU
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President Biden's first State of the Union address gave only a passing nod ([link removed]) to the climate crisis, touting $500 in household energy savings ([link removed]) by combating climate change. The president did not mention this week's report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that warned of widespread human suffering ([link removed]) if the world continues on its current path of carbon emissions. Biden did refer to an international plan to release “60 billion barrels of oil from reserves around the world” to lower energy prices and offset the effect of sanctions against Russia.
Quick hits
** Interior Inspector General confirms political interference with FOIA requests under Trump administration
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Montana governor kills Yellowstone-tracked mountain lion treed by hounds
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NBC News ([link removed]) | Washington Post ([link removed])
** Tribes hope for a "reboot" as Yellowstone marks 150 years
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USA Today ([link removed]) | E&E News ([link removed]) | NPR News ([link removed])
** Uranium may regain "critical" status despite USGS move, heightening risk to Grand Canyon
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E&E News ([link removed])
** Lake Powell likely to drop below critical level in the next two weeks
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Colorado Sun ([link removed])
** Fossil fuel companies are exploiting Russia's war on Ukraine
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Popular Information ([link removed])
** America's obsession with road salt is hurting our ecosystems
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Inverse ([link removed])
** New geofencing app will make it easier to get a permit to visit The Wave
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St George News ([link removed]) | KJZZ ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” Conservation in the U.S. as we know it begins with the dispossession of Native people. This is unsettling work, talking about decolonizing and unsettling the settler state. It means making people uncomfortable, inevitably, but we have to have these uncomfortable conversations.”
—Dina Gilio-Whitaker, California State University, San Marcos, E&E News ([link removed])
Picture this
** @natlparkservice ([link removed])
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Today we celebrate the 150th birthday of @YellowstoneNPS ([link removed]) . We also celebrate something much bigger—the beginning of the national park idea. Hear from @NatlParkService ([link removed]) Director Chuck Sams on the #Yellowstone150 ([link removed]) and the promise of that idea at: [link removed] ([link removed])
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