News & Updates
House committee marks up SPEED Act that would renounce, not reform, environmental protections nationwide
Today, the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources is set to vote on the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act (H.R. 4776). The Western Environmental Law Center urges members of the committee to vote no on this deceptively titled...
Agricultural groups challenge Montana DEQ for sidestepping public input on coal permit changes
Today Bull Mountain Land Alliance and Northern Plains Resource Council, represented by the Western Environmental Law Center, challenged the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) over the agency’s practice of approving coal mine permit changes behind closed...
5,000 oil and gas leases potentially invalid: Letter warns BLM reckless use of CRA has thrown legal foundation of public lands management into question
Six organizations sent a letter to the acting director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), warning that at least 5,033 oil and gas leases — covering nearly 4 million acres — may now be legally invalid. The letter asks the agency to halt all new leasing and...
Community Voices Demand Action: New Mexicans Speak Out for Bonding Reform
Public Comment Highlights After Oil Conservation Commission Hearing Conclusion Context & Background From October 20 through November 6, the New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission (OCC) held a public hearing on proposed rules to modernize oil and gas bonding and...
New Mexico water commission vacates tainted decision to hear oil and gas wastewater discharge rulemaking
Today, the Water Quality Control Commission (WQCC) met to consider water watchdogs’ motions to disqualify commissioners who, investigative reporting revealed, voted under duress from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) Sec. James...
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