Public policy decisions that will impact land and water conservation in the American West.
What did this year’s politics mean for public lands in the American West? Jonathan Thompson surveys recent political trends and their potential impact on conservation in the West in an article for High Country News.
The war in Ukraine has boosted demand for fossil fuels and other dormant industries like uranium mining while the federal government seeks to clean up polluted sites. “A gusher of federal funding aimed at plugging and cleaning up abandoned and orphaned oil and gas wells shone a spotlight on a pervasive and long-neglected problem. Meanwhile, the Biden administration, plagued by high gasoline prices, continued its back-and-forth approach to energy development on public lands.” The demand for “green metals,” which is growing due to the proliferation of electric vehicles, solar panels, and wind turbines, “has sparked the biggest mining rush on Western public lands since the uranium craze of the 1950s.”
Elsewhere, conservationists are celebrating the imminent removal of four dams and the possible removal of several others as federal regulators recognize the damage caused by dams to local biodiversity. But water supplies in the West’s major reservoirs continue to dwindle as states debate how to handle the deepening crisis.
More of Planetizen’s coverage of the water crisis on the Colorado River:
FULL STORY: How the West’s public lands fared in 2022
Colorado River States Inch Closer to Agreement
Upper Basin and Lower Basin states each say their plan for conserving the Colorado River’s water is the most sustainable.
Grand Canyon Area Could Gain New National Monument
The Biden administration has signaled support for a proposed national monument that would protect Native American lands around the Grand Canyon from uranium mining.
Public Lands in the United States, Part One: “Redeemed From Wilderness”
This is part one in a blog series examining the history of public lands in the United States and their shifting role in the American psyche.
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
New Park Opens in the Santa Clarita Valley
The City of Santa Clarita just celebrated the grand opening of its 38th park, the 10.5-acre Skyline Ranch Park.
U.S. Supreme Court: California's Impact Fees May Violate Takings Clause
A California property owner took El Dorado County to state court after paying a traffic impact fee he felt was exorbitant. He lost in trial court, appellate court, and the California Supreme Court denied review. Then the U.S. Supreme Court acted.
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