This Week at Interior August 20, 2021

Transcript:

This Week, at Interior 

Secretary Haaland this week announced two million dollars in grants to support state and Tribal conservation efforts, restoring and improving habitat for big game species. While in Lander, Wyoming with the Governor, the Secretary called the state a great model for how to advance collaborative conservation efforts. Enhancing existing wildlife migration corridors and connecting habitat is a priority for the Biden-Harris administration under its "America the Beautiful" initiative. 

The Secretary finished off her week-long western U.S. tour at Yellowstone National Park, where she highlighted how the Great American Outdoors Act is making significant investments in park infrastructure, creating jobs, and supporting local economies. The Secretary met with young people conducting conservation projects within the park, as well as with park leadership and staff to find out how they're navigating record visitation levels. 

The Bureau of Reclamation this week released a two year study of the Colorado River Basin which shows a steep decline in water availability, due to the ongoing historic drought, and low runoff conditions. Total Colorado River system storage today is 40% of capacity, down from 49% at this time last year. The study projections will be used to set annual operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead next year. 

Deputy Secretary Tommy Beaudreau spent two days in North Dakota this week, where he highlighted the Biden-Harris administration’s investments in America’s infrastructure. Stops included a roundtable discussion at Bismarck State College, a visit to the Snake Creek Pumping Plant near Coleharbor, and a tour and roundtable at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. 

Interior and the Department of Agriculture this week announced the activation of President Biden's pay initiatives to recognize and support federal wildland firefighters. That means a pay raise for approximately 35-hundred Interior firefighters, and more than 11 thousand firefighters at USDA’s Forest Service. No firefighter will make less than $15 an hour. The Biden-Harris administration is working with Congress on much-needed, longer-term support, benefits, and work-life balance improvements for federal firefighters. 

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management this week announced it has completed its environmental review of the proposed South Fork Wind project. That project offshore New York and Rhode Island could create up to 1,700 jobs and deliver about 130 megawatts of power. It's another step towards achieving the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of accelerating responsible development of renewable energy to tackle the climate crisis and create good-paying union jobs. 

A joint report from the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service indicates the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome in bats may have spread to five counties across southern California and northern Arizona. The syndrome has caused the deaths of millions of bats across the country over the last several decades. The findings suggest help from the public is needed, and it should continue to report the discovery of any dead or dying bats.   

And our social media Picture of the Week, the rocky, rough and ready canyons on BLM-managed lands surrounding Moab, Utah. Perfect for four-wheeling, hiking and camping, this canyon country offers spectacular scenery, a vast array of arches, spires, cliffs and mesas. Just remember to leave no trace. 

Make sure you follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and You Tube.   

That’s This Week, at Interior. 

This Week: Secretary Deb Haaland announces $2 million in grants to support state and Tribal conservation efforts while in Wyoming; the Secretary concludes her week-long western U.S. tour at Yellowstone National Park; the Bureau of Reclamation releases a two-year study of the Colorado River Basin, showing a steep decline in water availability; Deputy Secretary Tommy Beaudreau visits North Dakota, where he highlights the Biden-Harris administration’s investments in America’s infrastructure; Interior and the Department of Agriculture announce the activation of President Biden's pay initiatives for federal wildland firefighters, including an increase in base pay to $15 an hour; the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announces the completion of its environmental review of the proposed South Fork Wind project; a new report shows the fungus that causes white-nose syndrome in bats may be spreading across the Southwest; and the spectacular scenery outside Moab, Utah takes center stage in our social media Picture of the Week!

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    04/11/2025

    This Week at Interior April 11, 2025

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    This Week at Interior

    President Trump this week signed Executive Orders aimed at achieving the Administration's goal of American Energy Dominance with a renewed focus on coal. One of the orders directs Interior to identify untapped coal resources on federal lands, while removing barriers to mining and leasing.

    The value of untapped coal in our country is one hundred times greater than the value of all the gold at Fort Knox, and we're going to unleash it and make America rich and powerful again.

    To advance the President Trump's order, Interior will implement a series of policy moves and regulatory reforms to position coal as a cornerstone of the nation’s energy strategy by ensuring federally managed lands remain open and accessible for responsible energy development. Secretary Burgum likened the actions to creating a new Golden Age of "Mine, Baby, Mine," saying that  

    Interior is unlocking America’s full potential in energy dominance and economic development to make life more affordable for every American family while showing the world the power of America’s natural resources and innovation.  

    Among the actions are ending the moratorium on federal coal leasing, reopening federal lands in Montana and Wyoming to coal leasing, removing regulatory burdens for coal mines, and providing royalty rate relief.  

    Interior this week announced the disbursement of more than $13 million in grants to support the reclamation of abandoned mine lands, furthering the Trump administration’s commitment to American Energy Dominance, environmental stewardship and economic renewal in coal communities. The funding is administered through the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, and it will support job creation and economic revitalization efforts in North Dakota, Tennessee and Texas.  

    Interior this week announced the release of updated oil and gas reserve estimates for the Gulf of America's Outer Continental Shelf. The new data and analysis over the last couple of years reveal an additional 1.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent since 2021, bringing the total reserve estimate to 7.04 billion barrels of oil equivalent. That figure includes 5.77 billion barrels of oil and 7.15 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Earlier this year, the Trump administration announced plans to significantly increase oil and gas leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf, and just last week Secretary Burgum directed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to hold the first Gulf of America oil and gas lease sale since its renaming in February.

    Secretary Burgum held his first All Hands meeting this week at Interior's historic Yates Auditorium. The Secretary saluted the notable accomplishments the Department has achieved in making the transition from the previous administration, and expanded on his vision that innovation, rather than regulation, is the cornerstone of American prosperity.

    The thing that has led our country for 250 years is innovation, doesn't matter whether it's the Agricultural Revolution, the Industrial Revolution our ability to innovate in a way that allowed us to win World War One and World War II and lead the world and become the world leader, all of it was innovation based, and we have to get back to those roots. That's how we win. That's how America wins in this world, that's how we win again for our children and our children's children, is we win with innovation.

    U.S. Geological Survey crews were deployed late last week and this week to monitor flood impacts after storms dumped heavy rain across portions of the southeast and Midwest. Crews are still hard at work gathering flood measurements in Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois and Ohio, as well as West Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi, where as much as ten inches of rain fell causing massive flooding. The gages provide information for the National Weather Service to predict when dangerous flooding might occur and allow for warnings to vulnerable residents, as flood crests will continue into early May.

    And our social media Picture of the Week, California's Battery Point Lighthouse. Perched on California's rugged northern coast, this historic beacon stands among the rocky outcrops of the California Coastal National Monument and has guided mariners since its first lighting in 1856.

    Make sure you follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and X! That's This Week at Interior!


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    News and headlines from Interior April 11, 2025

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