Pulse of the Land - 1/5/2025
Process became policy this week - fees, lease-sale calendars, and “alignment” memos quietly deciding what gets built, who gets access, and where the next lawsuits land.
This Week’s Take
The throughline this week was procedure as power. Not the grand speech, the press conference, or the “big vision.” The levers were quieter: replacement lease sales to satisfy statute, new fee structures that change who shows up, and internal “alignment” reviews that can reshape entire systems without a single shovel hitting dirt.
And right on cue, the second act showed up: lawsuits (offshore wind), oversight (a wildfire/watershed hearing), and stakeholder mobilization (refuge advocates trying to get ahead of a fast-moving review). The chessboard is the same. The clock just got louder.
The State of Public Lands and Energy Relationship
December 30 — Wyoming’s “bonus” lease sale goes live (and the fights move to the fine print)
The Bureau of Land Management held an additional oil-and-gas lease sale in Wyoming on Dec. 30, offering 34 parcels / ~26,050 acres, explicitly to meet requirements of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Reporting leading up to the sale also noted BLM had pulled a chunk of parcels earlier in December including many tied to the politically famous Golden Triangle after pressure over habitat and migration impacts.
Why it matters: When Congress (or statute) demands the sale, the real battlefield shifts to parcel screening, stipulations, and litigation risk. Developers get “certainty” on the calendar—then inherit uncertainty on the ground.
January 1 — National parks add a nonresident fee at 11 parks (and a new global “annual pass” tier)
As of Jan. 1, 2026, the National Park Service began charging a $100 “International Visitor Fee” for non-U.S. residents age 16+ at 11 high-visit parks, and launched a 12-month nonresident annual pass priced at $320. Interior framed it as “modernizing” recreation fees and directing more funding toward visitor services and infrastructure.
Why it matters: This is public-lands policy through a turnstile. More revenue can mean better staffing and maintenance but it also changes who pays, who visits, and how access feels, especially when “public” becomes “tiered.”
Government Spotlight Public Lands
January 5 — Refuge & hatchery “mission alignment” review hits its first deadline
A Fish and Wildlife Service director’s order launched a comprehensive review of the National Wildlife Refuge Systemand National Fish Hatchery System, covering 573 refuges and 71 hatcheries. The order sets a rapid timeline: an initial summary of organizational change recommendations due Jan. 5, 2026, with fuller recommendations due Feb. 15. Refuge partners have been urging people to engage early, including through planned feedback channels.
Why it matters: Refuges are America’s biodiversity “savings account.” A review can strengthen that account (staffing, maintenance, clarity) or quietly redefine what “alignment” means. Either way, the first internal memo date (Jan. 5) is the kind of deadline that shapes real-world outcomes.
January 5 — House Natural Resources tees up a wildfire + watersheds hearing
The House Natural Resources Committee posted a hearing focused on forest management and wildfire impacts on water and power reliability (“Fix Our Forests…”), scheduled for early January.
Why it matters: Wildfire policy is also infrastructure policy transmission corridors, fuels work, access roads, NEPA timelines, and where projects get prioritized. If you care about clean energy and intact habitat, these hearings are where the guardrails get tightened or loosened.
Clean Energy in the News
December 30 — BLM signals “more geothermal, more often” with annual lease-sale direction
BLM guidance (Implementation Memorandum IM 2026-004) pushes field offices toward annual competitive geothermal lease sales for industry-nominated parcels, tightening the cadence between interest and leasing.
Why it matters: Geothermal can be a low-footprint workhorse if it’s steered toward disturbed ground and sensitive watersheds are treated like the main character, not a footnote. Faster leasing is only “good news” if the siting discipline keeps pace.
January 2 — Offshore wind halt turns into offshore wind lawsuits
After a federal stop-work action on offshore wind projects, major developers moved to the courts seeking to lift or block the halt and restart construction. Legal advocates have also questioned the breadth and process of the halt.
Why it matters: This is a stress test for executive stop-work authority vs. administrative process. The outcome won’t just shape offshore wind it will reset perceived risk for any large clean-energy project that depends on federal approvals and federal patience.
January 5 — A Four Corners “mountain battery” keeps inching forward
A pumped-storage hydropower proposal in the Four Corners region continued advancing early planning and feasibility work, pitched as long-duration storage to firm wind and solar.
Why it matters: Long-duration storage can mean fewer peakers and less grid panic but pumped storage is always a water + land + cultural-sites story. The win condition isn’t “it’s clean.” It’s “it’s durable.”
“There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot.” — Aldo Leopold
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:
BLM - BLM announces additional December 2025 oil and gas lease sale in Wyoming
NPS - Nonresident Fees
US DOI - Department of the Interior Announces Modernized, More Affordable National Park Access
US Fish and Wildlife - Requirements and Expectations – Review of the National Wildlife Refuge System and National Fish Hatchery System
National Wildlife Refuge Association - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Launches Review of the National Wildlife Refuge & Fish Hatchery Systems: What We Know and How to Engage
BLM - Promoting Annual Competitive Geothermal Lease Sales
Circle of Blue - Massive Energy Storage Project Eyed for Four Corners Region