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On Tuesday, February 18, the Trump administration will open an unprecedented 60-day comment period asking the public to comment on a study authored by its own scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) entitled “Seismic survey design and potential impacts to maternal polar bear dens.” The study is intended to support decision making on potential fossil fuel development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, though such research is not typically offered for public comment.

Yesterday, President Trump released his proposed federal budget for 2021 that significantly cuts programs that conserve wildlife, support science and address climate change.

After weeks of negotiations, Congress unveiled the $1.4 trillion package that will raise discretionary federal spending by $49 billion for the rest of fiscal 2020.

The Trump administration will be holding an oil and gas lease sale for 4 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPRA) today. Lease sales in the NPRA have been held annually since 2011. The last two lease sales in the reserve brought in $1 million and $1.5 million, respectively.

Today, the Bureau of Land Management released the draft Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the 22-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A).