Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** Texas goes on a public land buying spree
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Tuesday, July 29, 2025
Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, Texas Parks & Wildlife ([link removed])
Texas, which is among the states with the least amount of public land ([link removed]) , is going on a land buying spree. In 2023, Texas voters approved a $1 billion fund ([link removed]) to provide a permanent funding source for new state parks and natural areas. The Texas Tribune reports that those purchases are now underway ([link removed]) , starting with a new Post Oak Ridge State Park and expanding the Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, both located in the "Texas Triangle" between Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas.
The parks are creating new hunting and recreation opportunities while also expanding the scope of conservation in the state.
“One of the exciting things is that landscape scale of conservation, where we're protecting now 10,000 acres,” said JJ Fleury ([link removed]) with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Scientists are cataloging species and wetlands in the new parks to make sure facilities avoid the most sensitive areas.
The expansion of public land in Texas was spurred in part by the loss of a 1,800-acre state park ([link removed]) south of Dallas in 2023. That park was on private land leased to the state. The owner, a private power company, terminated the lease and sold the land to a private developer to build a luxury housing project.
EPA goes all-in on science denial
Today, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to propose rescinding its own authority ([link removed]) to regulate the pollution that causes climate change. That rule, the 16-year-old "endangerment finding," was based in science that found heat-trapping emissions from vehicles, power plants, and gas wells endangered public health by driving climate change.
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin last week praised carbon dioxide ([link removed]) , the primary driver of climate change, as "necessary for life." Robert Brulle, a visiting professor at Brown University, told The Hill ([link removed]) that Zeldin's actions and words amount to full-on climate denial.
“Is Lee Zeldin a climate denier? Yes, I would say, by my considered professional opinion, as a person who studies climate obstruction and climate denial … yes, he’s a full-fledged climate denier,” Brulle said.
** Quick hits
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Huffman balks at Westerman NEPA exclusion bill; other Dems silent
E&E News ([link removed])
How cuts to national parks may harm communities and lands
PBS NewsHour ([link removed]) | Inside Climate News ([link removed])
Interior yanks Biden plan on Alaska energy development
E&E News ([link removed]) | Department of the Interior ([link removed]) (Press Release)
Utah PR firm won $2.6 million state contract then donated services to Gov. Cox's campaign
Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
Trump's climate cuts have nonprofits scrambling to survive
Bloomberg ([link removed])
Interview: As public lands come under attack, here's why they're worth saving
KQED ([link removed])
Opinion: I started my career in Dinosaur National Monument; now I fear for its future
Salt Lake Tribune ([link removed])
"World's largest" wildlife overpass under construction in Colorado
Axios Denver ([link removed]) | Denver7 ([link removed]) | CBS Denver ([link removed]) | The Gazette ([link removed]) | KKTV ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” These landscapes that maybe don’t have that same blast of scenic beauty that the national parks have, they serve as really important ecological places for different flora and fauna. These are landscapes that are on the edges of national parks and national forest and provide these really amazing wildlife corridors that are really important. So even if you look out on these places that look like an empty landscape, these are places that wildlife roam.”
—Author Josh Jackson, KQED ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@grandcanyonnps ([link removed])
A heartfelt thank you to the BIA Wildland Fire Management - Navajo Region, and the Yavapai-Apache Nation Wildland Camp Crew, who are on the front lines of the Dragon Bravo Fire—working tirelessly to protect Grand Canyon National Park and surrounding communities.
The Grand Canyon is more than a natural wonder—it is a sacred homeland to many Tribal Nations, including the Havasupai Tribe, Hopi Tribe, Hualapai Tribe, Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Las Vegas Band of Paiute Indians, Moapa Band of Paiute Indians, Navajo Nation, Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe, Pueblo of Zuni, and Yavapai-Apache Nation.
These Indigenous firefighters aren’t just battling flames—they are protecting sacred landscapes, traditional knowledge, and the living connection between Native peoples and the Grand Canyon.
We are deeply grateful for their strength, dedication, and continued service. Stay safe and thank you.
Top right photo: The Navajo Interagency Hotshot Crew (NIHC)
Lower right photo: The Yavapai-Apache Nation Wildland Camp Crew.
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