Pulse of the Land - 10/20/2025
A weekly brief for conservation and cleaner energy
Key Takeaways This Week
The Market has no interest in coal leasing
Oil & Gas leases on brownfields
“Fix Our Forests Act” cleared a committee. Mixed review from conservation groups
The State of Public Lands and Energy Relationship
Coal leasing keeps stumbling on federal land.
The Interior Department rejected a bid to mine coal under national forest land in Utah. It was the third failed coal sale in the West this month—another sign that companies are not eager to expand coal on public land.
Offshore wind problems ripple inland.
A major ship contract tied to a New York wind project was canceled. When offshore projects slip, it can delay port work, grid connections, and local jobs back on shore.
Oil and gas leasing moves ahead, but quietly.
The Bureau of Land Management kept a small lease sale in North Dakota on the calendar. It is modest, but it shows oil and gas activity on public land is still continuing even as coal interest fades.
Details
North Dakota oil & gas - sale held Oct 21. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) offered 4 parcels (≈2,068 acres) in North Dakota.Where: McKenzie County (western ND), the heart of the long-developed Bakken oil field. Brownfield or pristine? Brownfield. This is a mature oilfield landscape with extensive existing roads, pads, and midstream.
Nevada geothermal — auction Oct 21 - BLM ran a geothermal lease sale for 113 parcels (~378,000 acres). Where: Spread across 11 Nevada counties (e.g., Churchill, Humboldt, Lander, Nye, etc.)—many within well-known geothermal belts near places like Fallon/Dixie Valley where development already exists. Brownfield or pristine? Mostly brownfield-adjacent/mixed. A lot of these tracts lie near existing geothermal fields and transmission corridors, though some parcels extend into less-disturbed basins.
BLM proposes 46 parcels (~68,263 acres) for the fourth-quarter 2025 Utah sale; the public protest window runs through late October. Brownfield or pristine? Mixed. Several parcels adjoin or overlay existing oil/gas footprints (brownfield), while others touch less-developed desert or steppe.
Seeing energy projects on brownfields are a good think to keep
Government Spotlight Public Lands
A judge paused planned layoffs at the Interior Department.
A federal judge in San Francisco temporarily stopped staff cuts across agencies that manage parks, rangelands, and wildlife refuges. Internal lists of targeted positions became public the next day. The ruling matters for on-the-ground capacity going into fall.
A forest bill advanced in the Senate.
The “Fix Our Forests Act” cleared a committee. Supporters say it would speed up wildfire prevention. Critics warn it could weaken the National Environmental Policy Act and put old-growth forests at risk. Where it is right now. The House passed its version in January; the Senate version just cleared a key committee and is gathering support and criticism as it moves toward a floor vote.
What it does:
Speeds up federal forest projects.
Tilts toward quicker “yes” decisions.
Conservation groups generally call for thinning and controlled burns, better forest data, and empowering Tribal and local leadership, principles that line up with the bill’s stated goals (again, implementation details matter).
However, there are lots of tradeoffs:
Less public input and science review. Environmental groups and park-advocacy coalitions argue the bill weakens the National Environmental Policy Act process (e.g., more categorical exclusions, faster timelines), which could reduce community input and careful analysis—especially in sensitive areas.
Old-growth and roadless impacts. Several analyses say the bill could open the door to logging in older forests or near roadless/backcountry habitats under the banner of “risk reduction,” with lasting effects on wildlife and carbon storage.
Post-fire logging (salvage) tradeoffs. Faster salvage can speed replanting and reduce hazards, but done too broadly it can harm soils, streams, and regeneration potential—especially if road building expands. Critics want tighter sideboards.
Old-growth policy collision. The administration already pulled back a nationwide old-growth protection plan under pressure; if this bill also lowers checks, watchdogs fear a second hit to older forests without a clear, durable safeguard.
Clean Energy in the News
Energy awards were pulled back again.
The Energy Department canceled hundreds of millions of dollars in clean-energy manufacturing grants after projects missed milestones. It adds to a pattern of recent funding reversals that could slow factory plans.
The federal energy regulator met on October 16.
The commission released brief summaries of decisions on transmission lines, power-plant connections, and reliability. Full orders are expected soon and will shape how fast new projects can plug into the grid.
Where this “lands” on conservation
Net effect: mixed—helpful for climate and air, risky for habitat if siting is sloppy.
The commission’s October 16 agenda moved several items that speed the build-out of wires and hookups for new power plants. Faster hookups and better planning generally help retire older, dirtier plants sooner, which is good for air, water, and wildlife downstream of those plants.
But new long-distance power lines and substations can still cut up habitat if routes aren’t pushed onto existing corridors, rail lines, highways, or other disturbed ground. In other words: climate benefits are real, land-use costs depend on siting choices.
Offshore wind’s ship cancellation raised fresh doubts.
The loss of a nearly finished turbine-installation vessel puts more schedule pressure on East Coast wind projects, even as a few projects continue to move forward.
What to Watch Next Week
Whether the Interior Department narrows or appeals the judge’s pause on layoffs, and what that means for staffing at national parks and public-land field offices.
If the Interior Department rejects more weak coal bids and when it reschedules a postponed Wyoming sale.
The full text of the federal regulator’s October 16 decisions on transmission and project interconnections.
Thank you for reading! I highlight threats to public lands and the energy industry’s impact. I believe clean energy is the future, and ALL energy projects should prioritize private land first to keep wild places wild. When energy extraction is needed on public lands all projects must restore the land after extraction. Public lands are unique and once lost, they’re gone forever.