Overview
- The Bureau of Land Management approved amendments to 77 land-use plans covering about 65 million acres, easing restrictions to allow more oil, gas, mineral and infrastructure development.
- Key changes include eliminating an annual population-warning system, removing protections from more than 4 million acres in Utah, and dropping grass-height standards for nesting habitat.
- The revisions adjust habitat designations and loosen limits on major rights-of-way in Nevada, while leaving Biden-era protections in Oregon and Colorado unchanged.
- BLM leaders and ranching and industry groups say the plans reflect the latest science and local input and will balance conservation with energy security and grazing needs.
- Environmental organizations, including the Center for Biological Diversity and Western Watersheds Project, criticize the move as accelerating declines and say they will sue to block the amendments.