Trump administration plan would roll back environmental reviews covering use of public lands
A logging truck travels on the Katahdin Woods and Waters scenic byway in Patten  Maine  in August 2017. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke recommended in  his final report to President Trump  on Dec. 5  that timbering should be allowed in the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument  just west of the byway  and that infrastructure upgrades and public access for "traditional uses" such as snowmobiling and hunting should be prioritized in a management plan. (Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press)
 The Sept. 27 report  â which was issued in response to a March 27 memo from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke  but never publicly released â amounts to a blueprint for how the  Trump  administration plans to expedite extractive activities on 245 million acres of public land and 700 million acres of the mineral estate below the surface.
Industry officials have been working with the Trump administration for months on such questions  and praised the direction of the proposed BLM changes.
Zinke called for the recommendations after  Trump  signed legislation nullifying a BLM rule finalized under Obama  dubbed Planning 2.0  that aimed to streamline the permitting process and balance competing interests out West. While BLM land boasts minerals and significant grazing pastures  it also encompasses iconic landscapes and cultural and archaeological artifacts that draw tourists as well as researchers.
The proposed changes also come under the auspices of an executive order from  President Trump  last summer meant to establish âdiscipline and accountabilityâ in the environmental review of infrastructure projects.
 Trumpâs infrastructure plan  a year in the making   is set to be released next week.  It  reportedly is heavily focused on rolling back regulations  rather than making major new federal investments.
A logging truck travels on the Katahdin Woods and Waters scenic byway in Patten  Maine  in August 2017. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke recommended in  his final report to  [TGT] on Dec. 5  that timbering should be allowed in the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument  just west of the byway  and that infrastructure upgrades and public access for "traditional uses" such as snowmobiling and hunting should be prioritized in a management plan. (Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press)
 The Sept. 27 report  â which was issued in response to a March 27 memo from Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke  but never publicly released â amounts to a blueprint for how  [TGT]  plans to expedite extractive activities on 245 million acres of public land and 700 million acres of the mineral estate below the surface.
Industry officials have been working with  [TGT]  for months on such questions  and praised the direction of the proposed BLM changes.
Zinke called for the recommendations after   [TGT]   signed legislation nullifying a BLM rule finalized under Obama  dubbed Planning 2.0  that aimed to streamline the permitting process and balance competing interests out West. While BLM land boasts minerals and significant grazing pastures  it also encompasses iconic landscapes and cultural and archaeological artifacts that draw tourists as well as researchers.
The proposed changes also come under the auspices of an executive order from  President Trump  last summer meant to establish âdiscipline and accountabilityâ in the environmental review of infrastructure projects.
  [TGT] a year in the making   is set to be released next week.   [TGT]   reportedly is heavily focused on rolling back regulations  rather than making major new federal investments.