The Trump administration is making moves to reopen the Powder River Basin in northeast Wyoming and southeast Montana for new coal mining. It’s unclear how much demand there is for new development.
New coal leasing in the nation’s top producing coal region has been under a moratorium imposed by the Biden administration late last year, largely based on its contribution to climate change. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) adopted that wording to resource management plans for its Buffalo and Miles City field offices in late November. The agency estimated existing mining activity would dry up by the end of 2040.
Shortly after in December, Montana and Wyoming sued. Industry leaders and Wyoming politicians have voiced that they think the BLM’s November decision was an attack on Wyoming’s top money maker.
Then in April, U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyoming) held up a sparkly, black rock before his fellow lawmakers.
“This is Wyoming coal,” he said. “We need more of it, not less of it to power our nation.”
That belief was echoed in several of Pres. Trump’s executive orders, including some signed in April.
“It’s part of this bold plan the administration has to restore American energy dominance,” said Barrasso.
Those orders are helping to amend the BLM’s Powder River Basin resource plans. The agency announced this week it’s considering reopening coal leasing, specifically tying the choice to Trump’s plan for “Unleashing American Energy.”
The BLM’s official notice of intent document was published July 8. It outlines two options for the future amendment. The first action is a no action/current decision, which would keep the area closed to new coal leasing. The second option is the “proposed action,” which would open the 1,214,380 acres “for further consideration for coal leasing.” The public has until August 7th to weigh in.
A 30-day public comment period for this type of plan amendment is “not normal,” according to conservation group Earthjustice. They added that prior to this, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations required 45 days. However, the Trump administration is dismantling the federal act, which was signed into law in 1970. It intended to protect the environment as much as possible and involved the public along the way.
A White House press release said they’re streamlining the act to “simplify this overly burdensome process and ensure efficient and timely environmental reviews.” This is also in support of the administration’s plan to Unleash American Energy.
“We will end the government bias against coal and we’re going to unlock the Defense Production Act to turbo charge coal mining in America,” Trump said in an April press conference where he signed several executive orders. “They made it impossible.”
Trump said Democrats have hampered the coal industry. However, coal has continued to decline under both Republican and Democratic presidents, including during Trump’s first presidency.
It’s also unclear how much demand there is for development in the Powder River Basin. Wyoming hasn’t sold any new federal coal leases since 2012.
