After years of controversy, political wrangling and complaints from Wyoming residents and officials, the Bureau of Land Management on Friday finalized its plan for more than 3 million acres in southwest Wyoming. Only an act of Congress can stop it now.
Opponents of the BLM’s Rocks Springs Resource Management Plan (RMP) now may have to count on the Congressional Review Act to stop it from being implanted, said Wyoming resident Rob Wallace, who is the former assistant secretary of the Interior in the first Trump administration.
“Congress will have the opportunity to overturn the rule using the Congressional Review Act,” he told Cowboy State Daily. “Also, there may be some administrative options, but I’d have to research those further. To me, the CRA is a likely path forward.”
Gordon Vows To Keep Fighting
The BLM on Friday signed and released its record of decision (ROD) for the Rock Springs plan, which Wyoming officials say could devastate the region’s extraction industries.
BLM Principal Deputy Director Nada Culver previously rejected an appeal of the plan from Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon.
Gordon vowed to continue fighting back against the Rock Springs RMP, but it was rushed through before President Joe Biden leaves office, according to a statement issued by Gordon’s office Friday afternoon.
“The Biden administration’s BLM did everything within its power to push this out the door before President Trump takes office and their director leaves for a position with an environmental group,” he said. “While it is not surprising that Wyoming’s comments were figuratively dumped in the trash, it is disappointing that despite years of collaborative work between state agencies, impacted counties, concerned citizens and interest groups, all Wyoming is left with is this parting shot from the Biden administration.”
Gordon is counting on the incoming Trump administration and Congress to back him up.
“I am absolutely committed to reviewing and pursuing all the options we have to claw back this misguided ROD,” he said. “With President Trump in office, former (North Dakota) Gov. (James) Burgum at the head of the Department of the Interior, and a Republican Senate and House, I am confident that we will have the ability to finish the job and right a course that has been so far off track over the last four years.”
Many Opposed Plan
The BLM Rock Springs office oversees roughly 3.6 million acres, and the RMP for that area hasn’t been updated for decades.
The agency’s preferred plan, “Alternative B” has been widely criticized by Wyomingites since it was released last year.
Many say it is too restrictive on energy development, livestock grazing leases and motorized public access.
Sweetwater County officials have said it could devastate the area’s economy by hampering energy, tourism and recreation.
Greater Little Mountain Was Done Right
Gordon last year appointed an 11-member task force charged with digging into the RMP and finding ways to make it more suitable for Wyoming.
Josh Coursey, president and CEO of the Muley Fanatic Foundation, a mule deer conservation group, was a member of that task force.
One specific part of the RMP that he’s pleased with is the plan to protect the Greater Little Mountain area, which includes about 15% of the land in question.
The plan to preserve Greater Little Mountain is backed by a broad base. That includes hunters, energy companies, ranchers and local governments in Sweetwater County, Rock Springs and Green River, Coursey told Cowboy State Daily on Friday.
All those groups working together for a common goal could serve as a template for the entire RMP, he said.
Outside of the Greater Little Mountain area, the BLM’s plan has “disconnects” that set different parties at odds, Coursey said.
If the plan as a whole is flawed, Coursey said he’d rather see Congress open it back up for amendments, following the model that was used to reach a consensus for Greater Little Mountain.
That would be better than having it completely nullified by Congress, he said.
The RMP as a whole needs to be reworked so it will better suit Wyoming, he said. But nullifying the entire thing would set everybody back to square one after years of work, Coursey said.
“Nullification would be like using a broadsword where a scalpel would suffice,” he said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
