Recently, the Trump Administration announced a plan to rewrite the rules for how a bedrock environmental law called the National Environmental Policy Act is implemented. The rule changes would restrict public engagement in federal projects and limit the scope of environmental review for development projects on public lands and waters. More importantly, the rule changes would eliminate what is known as the cumulative impacts analysis, which has historically required the government to consider the effects of their decisions on the climate.
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) held a public hearing in Denver at the EPA Region 8 headquarters where the 100 or so speaking slots filled in under four minutes! AAC Policy Manager Taylor Luneau provided testimony on behalf of the human-powered recreation community, saying:
NEPA is an essential pathway for the outdoor recreation community to engage in public land management and these changes will limit our ability to do just that. The CEQ will be accepting public comment on their revisions to NEPA until March 10. Please take a moment to let the CEQ know that we oppose these changes in the brief action alert below.