Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities
** The Trump admin's push to sell out public lands to the highest bidder
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Tuesday, September 23, 2025
The Trump administration lifted drilling restrictions for the Ruby Mountains of Nevada. Source: USDA Flickr ([link removed]) .
After bipartisan opposition forced the removal of language from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that would have sold off national public lands, the Trump administration is still moving forward with proposals to transfer control over tens of millions of acres of public land to the oil and gas, mining, and timber industries.
A new report ([link removed]) from the Center for American Progress explains how the Trump administration is moving full speed ahead on its plans for removing protections for some of the most intact national forest lands, opening sensitive Arctic wildlife habitat for drilling, eliminating restrictions on mining for ecologically sensitive lands and waters, and erasing conservation requirements and habitat protections. At the same time, the administration is hitting the gas on sales that will hand corporations primary control of public lands, including those lands recently stripped of their protections.
According to the report ([link removed]) , the Trump administration has already initiated actions that could eliminate or weaken protections from more than 175 million acres of U.S. lands—an area larger than the states of California, Florida, and Georgia combined. This includes removing protections from 88 million acres of public lands and weakening species protections across more than 87 million acres of wildlife habitat. The report concludes that simultaneous actions to sell or give control of public lands to corporate interests for drilling, mining, and logging could spell long-term losses for the American public, stating ([link removed]) , “At rock-bottom prices, extractive corporations can scoop up long-term leases or mining claims that encumber public lands
for many decades.”
** Quick hits
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It's Fat Bear Week—vote for this year's champion!
ABC News ([link removed]) | The Guardian ([link removed])
More than 99% of commenters disapprove of Roadless Rule rollback
Outdoor Life ([link removed]) | Bloomberg Law ([link removed]) | WyoFile ([link removed])
BLM employee's resignation request rejected three times while he cared for his dying wife and three kids
Washington Post ([link removed])
Church construction damages 1,000-year old petroglyphs near Phoenix
Outside ([link removed])
As the 'nation's storyteller,' the National Park Service is in a bind over the Trump administration's view of history
National Parks Traveler ([link removed])
Colorado to join lawsuit over endangered species violations linked to oil trains
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel ([link removed])
Federal judge stops grazing in grizzly habitat near Yellowstone
Daily Montanan ([link removed])
Opinion: Assault on Wyoming public lands is just getting started
WyoFile ([link removed])
** Quote of the day
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” Allowing 21 days to unravel 25 years of forest protections tells you exactly what’s going on here, which is that this administration has no interest at all in listening to the American people.”
—CWP Deputy Director Aaron Weiss, Outdoor Life ([link removed])
** Picture This
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@nationalparkservice ([link removed])
Are you ready for #FatBearWeek ([link removed]) , where Katmai’s beefiest bruins flaunt their fluff, vying for glory as if they’re the wobbliest, blue-ribbon-winning Jell-O mold at a Midwest state fair?
One of the biggest questions we get during this week is, “How do you weigh the bears?” We get asked a lot of things, but this one is pretty big. Pun definitely intended.
So, how do you weigh the bears? The answer is: once. Just kidding! We could try getting a bear to sit nicely on a scale or just ask them flat-out what they weigh (rude), but good luck finding volunteers for that job. Before you raise your hand saying it’s your destiny, think it over. Who really wants to lug a giant doctor’s scale—one that no one really knows how to use—into the Alaskan wilderness and politely ask a 600-pound grizzly to step on it… before it steps on you? Huh? Anyone? Wow, so many hands are still raised.
Let’s go deeper. In the past, terrestrial LiDAR scanning has been used to calculate estimated volumes of some of the largest bears. However, another tried-and-true method is called “eyeballing it.” Bear with us. Actually, let’s go with “visual estimation” instead. That’s park-speak for eyeing a bear’s big belly, comparing it to, say, a barrel of salmon or a particularly stuffed camper van, and declaring, “That’s a proper unit.” No scales, no tape measures—just years of gawking at chunky bears and guesstimating their size. It’s a gift.
You can practice your best weight-guessing skills starting this week as you vote for your favorite fat bears. Matchups are open for voting from September 23–30, between 12 p.m.–9 p.m. Eastern (9 a.m.–6 p.m. Pacific). Learn more at: explore.org
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