U.S. government officials on Thursday finalized an overhaul of how they plan for oil and gas drilling, mining, grazing and other activities across public lands in the West.
The move by the Bureau of Land Management aims to address longstanding criticism of an often-cumbersome process that dictates development across almost 250 million acres of federal lands, primarily in 12 Western states and the Dakotas.
Administration officials said the changes would improve public involvement and government transparency by adding additional steps to land-use planning.
But members of Congress, industry groups and local officials have raised concerns about the overhaul's practical effects. They've said it will elevate wildlife and environmental preservation above other uses such as energy development and shift decision-making from agency field offices to Washington, D.C.
It updates regulations adopted in 1979. The Associated Press obtained details prior to Thursday's public announcement.
Among the changes, alternatives for development would be offered at the front-end of planning instead of well into the process.
Bureau of Land Management Deputy Director Linda Lance said the intent is to frontload the process so that thorny issues are revealed early. That will reduce the likelihood of lawsuits or the need for substantial revisions down the road, she said.
The federal agency has 160 management plans for the lands and mineral reserves that it oversees. Crafting those plans currently takes eight years on average.
"The hope is we are going to shave years off the process, not days," Lance said.
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