Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** Utah lawmakers approve Bears Ears land swap
------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, May 18, 2022
Bears Ears National Monument, Bob Wick, Bureau of Land Management ([link removed])

Lawmakers in Utah approved a land swap ([link removed]) to consolidate 160,000 acres of land in Bears Ears national monument. The swap would give the state school trust agency, SITLA, 165,000 acres of federal land with more economic potential to fund Utah schools.

SITLA's executive director, Michelle McConkie, stressed that the deal lets Utah trade out scenic and archaeologically-rich land that brings in very little revenue today, and in exchange gain land that is more easily monetized.

“Moving these parcels from federal ownership to SITLA ownership would give many communities across the state opportunities for economic development they would not otherwise have, in addition to allowing the trust to maximize its mandate and make money for the schoolchildren of the state.”

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance supports the exchange, but it would like to see 17,000 acres of wilderness land dropped from the deal.

"It's clearly going to result in better management for the sacred and cultural sites within the monument. However, the devil will be in the details and we are concerned about some of the lands that School Trust Lands proposes to acquire in the exchange," Steve Bloch, SUWA's legal director, told FOX 13 News ([link removed]) . "We’re adamant SITLA has to do better in what’s acquired and what’s developed."

The legislative approval comes with a one-year sunset provision. The swap will be off if President Biden doesn't sign a bill into law by May 17, 2023.


** Top 5 oil companies raked in $35 billion while Americans pay more at the pump
------------------------------------------------------------

America's five largest oil companies—Shell, ExxonMobil, BP, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips—made more than $35 billion in profits in the first three months of the year, according to a new analysis from the Center for American Progress ([link removed]) . That is more than triple their combined profits compared to the first quarter of 2021. CAP's analysis found that instead of using these windfall profits to make investments to lower gas prices ([link removed]) for consumers or to fulfill their climate pledges ([link removed]) , oil companies are giving the profits away to wealthy shareholders in the form of stock buybacks, or giving it to themselves ([link removed]) as executive
bonuses.
Quick hits


** Hydropower is 53% of the West's renewable energy, but drought is slowing down production
------------------------------------------------------------

Colorado Sun ([link removed])


** It's now cheaper to switch from coal to renewables instead of coal to gas
------------------------------------------------------------

CNBC ([link removed])


** Analysis: GOP lawmakers insert energy, clean water earmarks, then vote against funds for their own constituents
------------------------------------------------------------

E&E News ([link removed])


** Utah lawmakers approve Bears Ears land swap
------------------------------------------------------------

Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed]) | FOX 13 ([link removed])


** One month in, New Mexico's largest-ever fire fuels anger and despair
------------------------------------------------------------

Washington Post ([link removed])


** Alaska's largest oil company asks judge to block release of drilling info from National Petroleum Reserve
------------------------------------------------------------

Alaska Public Media ([link removed])


** How the courts have shaped Biden's leasing strategy
------------------------------------------------------------

E&E News ([link removed])


** Colorado fish species officially renamed to remove racial slur
------------------------------------------------------------

Out There Colorado ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” We can’t change the past. We can’t change the experience of assimilation. But what we can do is restore land to Native people ([link removed]) who were dispossessed. And if you would ask Indians, they would tell you exactly what land they want restored.”
—Historian Brenda Child, TIME ([link removed])
Picture this


** @u.s.forestservice ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
Every sunset brings the promise of a new dawn." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Boulder Mountains, Sawtooth National Forest. USDA Forest Service photo by Nils Ribi.

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Medium ([link removed])
** Instagram ([link removed])
Copyright © 2022 Center for Western Priorities, All rights reserved.
You've signed up to receive Look West updates.

Center for Western Priorities
1999 Broadway
Suite 520
Denver, CO 80202
USA
** View this on the web ([link removed])

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])