Doug Domenech explains for Federalist readers key Trump administration environmental achievements that attract little attention from the Biden team.
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), which is part of the Executive Office of the President, has produced “The Trump Administration’s Environmental Accomplishments.” Here are a few of the highlights you might not know about, especially since the Biden administration immediately removed this government report from the White House website.
President Trump Signed Historic Conservation Legislation
R. 1957, the “Great American Outdoors Act,” the largest public lands investment in American history.
47, the “Dingell Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act,” the largest public lands bill in nearly a decade, designates 1.3 million new acres of wilderness; supported land and water conservation; established a program to better respond to wildfires; and expanded access for recreational hunting and fishing on Federal lands.Through the Interior Department (DOI), 49 trails spanning 1,645 miles were added to the National Recreational Trails System while hunting and fishing opportunities were expanded across more than 2.3 million acres at 138 national wildlife refuges and nine national fish hatcheries.
Improved Forest Management
R. 2, the “Agriculture Improvement Act,” includes provisions to expedite forest management to reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfires.
Executive Order 13855, “Promoting Active Management of America’s Forests, Rangelands, and Other Federal Lands to Improve Conditions and Reduce Wildfire Risk,” improves wildland fire management and protect habitats and communities.
DOI reduced wildfire risk across 5.4 million acres of Interior-managed land.
S. Department of Agriculture improved forest conditions and reduced wildfire risk on over 2.65 million acres in 2020 alone.
Protected Endangered Species
More endangered and threatened species have been recovered than any previous administration’s first term.
DOI and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued revisions to the Endangered Species Act regulations to modernize and update the regulations.
Modified National Monuments to Expand Public Use
Designated Camp Nelson, a key emancipation site and a refugee camp for African American soldiers and their families during the Civil War, as a National Monument.