Is The Trump Administration Preparing To Sell Off Public Lands In Secret?

As plans remain undisclosed, fears grow that about large-scale reduction in protections for public lands, possible mass sell-off

Over a week after a deadline passed for a list of, “steps that will be taken to suspend, revise, or rescind,” public land protections at the Department of the Interior, no such document has been made available to lawmakers or the public. A letter from congressional Democrats states, “This delay suggests an attempt to evade Congressional oversight, public scrutiny, and accountability, fueling concerns that the Administration is moving to undermine public land protections and sell our natural resources to the highest bidders in secret.”

To recap, a raft of “day one” executive orders from the new President ordered that energy and mineral extraction take priority in management decisions on public lands. Then, on February 3rd, new Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum issued orders of his own, expanding extraction lease sales, and ordering a review of existing protections or all public lands under DOI management, including national monuments.