Pulse of the Land - 12/29/2025
A weekly brief for conservation and cleaner energy
This Week’s Take
Across the board, the throughline was process as policy: agencies and elected officials are using reviews, funding riders, and stop-work authority to steer what gets built (and what does not) on and around public lands and federal waters. That is producing a familiar pattern. Faster moves by the executive branch, followed quickly by litigation and budget brinkmanship that increases uncertainty for clean-energy developers and for conservation planning.
The State of Public Lands and Energy Relationship
December 22 — The “Grouse” in the coal mine
The Department of the Interior rolled back protections for the greater sage-grouse across large stretches of sagebrush habitat in the West, saying the changes would open more federal land to energy and mineral development while still protecting key habitat. The shift was announced by the Bureau of Land Management and framed as part of the administration’s push to expand domestic energy production.
Why it matters: This feels like an unnecessary squeeze. Sage-grouse habitat overlaps heavily with areas targeted for drilling, mining, transmission corridors, and other infrastructure, so weakening habitat guardrails can speed permitting and development, but also raises the risk of habitat fragmentation, population declines, and future legal or Endangered Species Act conflicts that can create long-term uncertainty for projects.
“The more we humans put our mark on the land, the fewer of the birds we have.” - Steven Rinella on Sage Grouse — Season 7 Ep. 5 MeatEater.
December 22 — Alaska’s petroleum reserve gets “opened up” again.
The Bureau of Land Management approved an updated management plan for the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska that opens about 82 percent of the reserve to oil and gas leasing again, reversing the prior plan’s tighter limits. Reporting in Alaska also notes the agency is preparing the first lease sale there since 2019, as required by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Why it matters: This is the biggest kind of public-lands energy decision. Zoning at the scale of ecosystems. More acreage “available” can mean more roads, pads, and pipeline corridors across caribou country and waterfowl habitat, and it sets up the next fights: what gets offered, where, and what mitigation actually sticks.
Government Spotlight Public Lands
December 22 — National wildlife refuges get a top-to-bottom “mission alignment” review.
The Fish and Wildlife Service is carrying out a systemwide review of national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries under a directive dated December 16, with early internal recommendations due in early January.
Why it matters: Refuges are the country’s biodiversity savings account. Reviews can be good (staffing, maintenance, clarity) or risky (quiet reprioritization) depending on what “alignment” ends up meaning. Especially when land-use pressure keeps rising around refuge boundaries. This is one we need to watch! Wes Siler wrote about this issue in his latest piece. Go check it out. → They’re Coming for Your Wildlife Refuges.
Clean Energy in the News
December 23 — Geothermal gets a faster on-ramp on federal land.
The Bureau of Land Management rolled out new direction to push annual competitive geothermal lease sales for industry-nominated parcels (more frequent than the minimum schedule in the Geothermal Steam Act), signaling a “more leasing, more often” posture for geothermal on public lands.
Why it matters: Geothermal is the rare clean-energy resource that can run like a steady workhorse if leasing and permitting move. Done right, this could speed low-footprint power on already-disturbed ground; done sloppy, it’s a recipe for rushed reviews and avoidable conflicts with sensitive habitat and watershed politics.
December 24 — Governors push Interior to lift the offshore wind freeze.
Governors from New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island urged Interior to reverse the suspension, arguing the projects had already gone through extensive review.
Why it matters: This is federal-state friction with grid consequences. Offshore wind is tied to onshore interconnections and transmission upgrades; if the offshore piece stalls, the onshore planning dominoes wobble too.
December 26 — Dominion sues over the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind halt.
Dominion Energy filed suit challenging the administration’s order halting its offshore wind project, seeking to block the stop-work action and restart construction.
Why it matters: This is the near-term test of where executive discretion ends and legal process begins. If courts rein in stop-work authority used this way, it reshapes risk for every large clean-energy project that depends on federal leases, federal consultations, and federal approvals.
December 22 — A “mountain battery” on Navajo Nation land moves forward in the planning phase.
A major pumped-storage hydropower proposal in the Four Corners region is advancing early-stage work, supported by a $7.1 million Department of Energy grant for feasibility studies, with the project pitched as long-duration storage to firm up wind and solar.
Why it matters: Long-duration storage can reduce the need for new peaker plants and ease grid stress—but pumped storage is also a water-and-land story (reservoirs, pipelines, cultural sites, wildlife, and drought math). This is exactly the kind of project where “clean” only counts if the siting and water plan are genuinely durable.
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.
Sources:
Reuters - US Interior Dept weakens sage-grouse protection to open more oil and mineral development
Bloomberg Law - Renewable Energy Groups Allege Agencies Unlawfully Block Permits
Reuter - Democratic governors call on Trump administration to lift freeze on offshore wind projects
Wes Siler’s Newsletter - They’re Coming For Your Wildlife Refuges
Associated Press - Virginia offshore wind developer sues over Trump administration order halting projects
E&E by Politico - BLM to accelerate geothermal lease sales on federal land
Anchorage Daily News - Trump administration opens vast majority of Alaska petroleum reserve to leasing
Circle of Blue - Massive Energy Storage Project Eyed for Four Corners Region