BLM Rescinds Conservation Leasing Rule for 245 Million Acres as Trump Pushes Drilling
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 16
BLM Rescinds Conservation Leasing Rule for 245 Million Acres as Trump Pushes Drilling
4 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 16
The Bureau of Land Management on Monday scrapped a Biden-era rule that had allowed public lands to be leased for conservation, reversing a policy shift before Steve Pearce’s nomination to lead the agency is confirmed.
The move aligns with President Trump’s push to prioritize federal land for oil and gas drilling, coal mining, logging and livestock grazing rather than preservation uses.
In New Mexico, the rollback has intensified a June 2 race for land commissioner, where Republicans could soon influence both federal and state land policy.
State land leases there generated a near-record $2.6 billion last year, mostly from oil and gas companies, underscoring the financial stakes in how public land is managed.
With federal rules favoring extraction, can New Mexico's state lands chart a different course for conservation and profit?
Can a land commissioner legally prioritize conservation if it means less immediate revenue for state services?
As global energy shocks continue, is prioritizing fossil fuels a risky bet for funding New Mexico's public schools?
245 Million Acres at Stake: The 2026 Repeal of the BLM Public Lands Rule and Its Impact on Conservation and Extraction
Overview
In May 2026, the Bureau of Land Management, under the Trump administration, officially rescinded the 2024 Conservation and Landscape Health Rule. This rule, created by the Biden administration and posted in May 2024, aimed to make conservation a core principle in managing public lands by prioritizing ecosystem health and resilience. Its main goal was to protect landscapes, restore habitats, and use science to guide decisions. With the rule’s reversal, the focus shifted away from conservation and back toward extractive uses like mining and drilling, marking a major change in public land management priorities.