Interior’s Rescission of NEPA Rule Undermines Environmental Protections, Evades Public Input

Conservation Lands Foundation
|July 02, 2025
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Shevawn Bell

shevawn@conservationlands.org

 

Washington, D.C. — The Department of the Interior today announced the release of an interim final rule rescinding its own implementing regulations for the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)—a bedrock environmental law that has safeguarded communities, public health and natural resources for over 50 years. The rule represents a sweeping rollback of common sense and public participation tools that Interior agencies use to evaluate the environmental impacts of major projects. If finalized, this move could severely undermine NEPA’s core purpose of ensuring informed decision-making, government accountability and meaningful public engagement in managing our shared environment.

Below is a statement from Chris Hill, CEO of the Conservation Lands Foundation, which represents a national network of community advocates who are solely focused on the public lands overseen by the Bureau of Land Management, including the National Conservation Lands:

“The administration’s rollback of NEPA regulations threatens the integrity of balanced and commonsense land use planning on federal public lands. By weakening the environmental review process and limiting public input, the Interior Department is undermining the careful, science-based decision-making that’s essential to protecting public lands and managing them for long-term health and sustainability.

“NEPA ensures that land management decisions reflect the values of the American people—clean water, healthy ecosystems and access to nature. Stripping away these tools opens the door to rushed development and fragmented planning, which will put irreplaceable landscapes, watersheds and local economies at risk.

“Public lands exist for the benefit of all, not just for short-term interests. Gutting NEPA’s implementing regulations is a shortsighted move that threatens balanced, sustainable land use and eliminates the public’s voice in shaping the future of our shared resources.”

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About Conservation Lands Foundation
We’re the only nonprofit leading a national movement of community-based advocates who care for America’s NATIONAL CONSERVATION LANDS of natural, historical, cultural and recreational significance.
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    Conservation Lands Foundation published this page in Latest News 2025-07-02 09:21:17 -0600
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