Bureau of Land Management removes climate and justice reviews from oil lease sale

The Bureau of Land Management stripped climate and environmental justice considerations from its review before auctioning oil and gas leases in New Mexico, a move consistent with the Trump administration’s efforts to weaken environmental oversight.

Marianne Lavelle reports for Inside Climate News.

In short:

• The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) auctioned seven parcels of land in southeastern New Mexico for oil and gas drilling, raising $20.7 million, but omitted analyses of climate and environmental justice impacts.
• The Trump administration’s revised policies claim the “social cost of greenhouse gases” is too uncertain to be useful and remove racial and demographic assessments from lease decisions.
• The White House Council on Environmental Quality has moved to overhaul the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), aiming to prioritize faster permitting and reduce environmental considerations in federal decision-making.

Key quote:

“The Trump administration appears desperate to ignore reality, but wishful thinking can’t erase climate change.”

— Ben Tettlebaum, director and senior staff attorney, The Wilderness Society

Why this matters:

Federal land leasing decisions shape the nation’s energy future, but removing climate and environmental justice considerations could have lasting consequences. The Permian Basin, a major oil-producing region, already faces air and water pollution concerns. Stripping environmental reviews limits communities’ ability to challenge projects that may worsen public health risks. Climate advocates argue that downplaying greenhouse gas impacts ignores the long-term economic and environmental costs of fossil fuel expansion. Legal battles are expected as environmental groups push back against the administration’s rollback of environmental protections.

Read more: Trump administration reverses Biden’s environmental justice programs