House passes bill that would block BLM’s ‘conservation lease’ program

The House passed the Western Economic Security Today Act (WEST Act), a bill that would overturn the Bureau of Land Management’s “conservation leases” rule, which was finalized earlier this month.

“The rule the BLM recently finalized undermines the very people who rely on our federal lands for ranching, grazing, recreation, and beyond,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. John Curtis, R-Utah, in a statement.

The rule allows environmental groups or state agencies to lease land for restoration or mitigation of industrial impacts, in the same way public land is leased for oil, gas and mineral development. Critics argue that the BLM rule would block the use of public lands for resource development, grazing, and recreation, and it goes against the agency’s congressionally-designated authority.

The American Exploration and Production Council (AXPC) praised the bill’s passage and urged the senate to pass the bill immediately.

“The American people deserve both responsible land management and energy production, but BLM’s so-called Conservation and Landscape Health Rule is nothing more than an attempt to go around Congress to prevent reasonable mineral development,” said AXPC CEO Anne Bradbury in a statement.