Agreement resolves 2021 lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s failure to address harm from oil and gas extraction

Conservation groups and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) have reached a settlement agreement that will prevent new oil and gas drilling on 58,000 acres of public lands in Montana and the Dakotas pending a new analysis of its potential harm to groundwater and the climate.

More than 25 million acres of public lands in the U.S. have been leased to the oil and gas industry for development. Earthjustice and our clients have taken a series of court actions to protect groundwater and our climate from risky oil and gas leases across staggering swaths of public lands. State and federal scientists…

Round II MT lease sale complaint 1.12.21

Feds ignored effect on groundwater, cumulative climate impacts

Defeated oil lease sale was a reckless rush to sacrifice Montana’s public lands to the Trump Administration’s “energy dominance” agenda

Federal judge rules BLM failed to consider risks to Montana’s environment and water supply before issuing 287 oil and gas leases