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Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before start of Olympics, the Obamas endorse Harris for President; A NY county creates facial recognition, privacy protections; Art breathes new life into pollution-ravaged MI community; 34 Years of the ADA.

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Harris meets with Israeli PM Netanyahu and calls for a ceasefire. MI Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces backlash for a protest during Netanyahu's speech. And VA Sen. Mark Warner advocates for student debt relief.

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There's a gap between how rural and urban folks feel about the economy, Colorado's 'Rural is Rad' aims to connect outdoor businesses, more than a dozen of Maine's infrastructure sites face repeated flooding, and chocolate chip cookies rock August.

New BLM rules better protect national parks, supporters say

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Monday, May 20, 2024   

Conservation groups said two new federal rules aim to help better protect public lands, including national parks.

The Bureau of Land Management's Public Lands Rule ensures conservation use is equal to extraction and development in decision-making on lands the agency manages. The BLM oversees 15.7 million acres in Oregon, about a quarter of the state's land area.

Matthew Kirby, senior director of energy and landscape conservation for the National Parks Conservation Association, said the rule is also good news for national parks like the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, which is surrounded by BLM lands.

"When we think about what does conserving the park resource look like, we need to look at the larger landscape and look across the health of the entire landscape," Kirby contented. "This public lands rule is going to begin to give us that sort of tool."

The rule also identifies conservation tools to restore degraded lands and keep natural landscapes intact. Opponents said it is part of an effort to block extraction and development on public lands.

The second new rule from the BLM overhauls oil and gas drilling leasing rules to prevent poorly-sited drilling and keep development away from national parks.

Kirby stressed the changes are important.

"Taken together, these two rules really bring a semblance of balance back to our public lands," Kirby contended. "And will allow the Bureau of Land Management to actually fulfill its obligation to manage those lands for multiple uses."

The BLM manages 245 million acres of land in the U.S.

Disclosure: The National Parks Conservation Association contributes to our fund for reporting on Budget Policy and Priorities, Climate Change/Air Quality, Endangered Species and Wildlife, Environment, Public Lands/Wilderness, and Water. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


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