The Trump Administration has worked tirelessly on issues concerning management of America’s public lands since taking office. Many obstacles will be addressed in the coming months.
The Bureau of Land Management has provided Freres with most of its timber supply for decades. A new BLM Resource Management Plan is drafted, under review, and will be released in the next 60 days. It is expected to meet the original intent of harvesting timber on a sustained yield, resulting in significantly higher volume sold. This will return more money to counties and the U.S. Treasury, increase economic activity in rural timber towns, and reduce pressure on the
need for higher local taxes for schools, roads, police, and fire departments.
The National Environmental Policy Act has been used by activists to stop management activities for decades. Federal agencies have relied on the Council on Environmental Quality regulations to guide their interpretation of laws. In a surprise decision, a federal judge ruled the CEQ didn’t have valid authority, and therefore all their regulations are eliminated, and past case law is not applicable to future agency actions.
The result of the CEQ decision is that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s new NEPA regulations are short and general and are an opportunity to begin with a clean slate of precedent. This has been described as a magic moment.
A Critical Habitat Designation for the Northern Spotted Owl has prevented the management of millions of acres of forestland for three decades. The definition of “harm” has been clarified to reduce the amount of acres off-limits to management, and millions of acres will be available for timber harvest. This decision is expected by year end.
HR 1, known as the Big Beautiful Bill, mandates that the Forest Service sell 250 million board feet more each year for a decade, and the Bureau of Land Management sells an additional 50 million board feet annually. These agencies have met that mandate in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2026.
The Forest Service will be producing an updated Northwest Forest Plan in the coming months and will allow cutting trees up to 120 years old and will address the ravages of fire.
The Forest Service is reviewing its Travel Management Plan, eliminating the Roadless Rule affecting an area the size of Oregon, and is looking to update the 2012 Planning Rule, which addresses how to amend forest plans.
Thank God for the Trump Administration’s efforts to eliminate bureaucratic and legal stumbling blocks to managing America’s public lands.
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