Department of the Interior

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US Sells Off Helium Supply, Stoking Fears in Medical World

Privatizing the reserve may complicate distribution of the crucial element

(Newser) - The US government sold off the Federal Helium Reserve this week to a private buyer, a worrying move to doctors and scientists who rely on the finite gas for everything from research to operating MRI machines. The deal is still being finalized with the highest bidder, industrial gas company Messer,...

Mad Scramble in US Museums on Native American Displays

New rules handed down by Biden administration prohibit such exhibits without consent from tribes

(Newser) - Museums across America have started closing exhibits highlighting Native American artifacts in an attempt to comply with new Biden administration rules that mandate venues get the OK from Indigenous tribes before displaying those samples. The requirements under the updated Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act , originally passed in 1990,...

Biden Yanks Alaska Oil Leases
Biden Yanks Alaska Oil Leases
Sep 7, 2023 7:25 AM CDT

Biden Yanks Alaska Oil Leases

'We have a responsibility,' president says of Interior Dept. move in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

(Newser) - As then-President Trump's days in the White House came to a close, an Alaskan state development agency was granted a slew of oil and gas leases that ended decades of a drilling moratorium in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. This week, President Biden's Department of the Interior nixed...

At 643 Federal Sites, a Slur Is Gone

Interior Department removes 'squaw' in deference to Native Americans

(Newser) - The place long known as Squaw Canyon in Arizona is now Red Rock Canyon. In California, Squaw Valley Spring is now Oso Kum Spring. And on and on across the US—the Interior Department this week released a list of 643 federal lands that have been renamed to remove the...

Feds Take Big Step Toward Ditching 'Squaw' Names

They're inviting public comment on replacements for derogatory term

(Newser) - Federal officials have come up with a list of potential replacement names for hundreds of geographic features in three dozen states that include the word "squaw," kicking off a public comment period that will run through late April. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland in November formally declared the term...

Watchdog: Zinke Misused Position Then Lied About It

Feds say former Interior Secretary didn't break from foundation as promised

(Newser) - Former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke misused his position to advance a development project in his Montana hometown and lied to an agency ethics official about his involvement, according to a report from federal investigators released Wednesday. The investigation by the Interior Department's inspector general found that Zinke continued working...

Interior Secretary to Wipe 'Squaw' From Government Use

Deb Haaland rules the term derogatory

(Newser) - Interior Secretary Deb Haaland on Friday formally declared "squaw" a derogatory term and said she is taking steps to remove it from federal government use and to replace other derogatory place names. Haaland is ordering a federal panel tasked with naming geographic places to implement procedures to eliminate what...

Biden Pick Would Break a 245-Year String

Native American has never overseen US policy with tribes

(Newser) - President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland as interior secretary, a historic pick that would make her the first Native American to lead the agency that has wielded influence over the nation's tribes for generations, per the AP . Tribal leaders and activists around the country,...

Judge to Acting Public Lands Chief: You're Out

William Pendley removed from role after ruling says he's been 'unlawfully' serving for 424 days

(Newser) - He had a good, but apparently illegal, run. William Perry Pendley got some bad news Friday via a federal judge, who ordered the 75-year-old to be removed as the head of the Bureau of Land Management, a role he'd held for 424 days without Senate confirmation. "Pendley has...

Coming Soon to Sprawling Alaska Refuge: Oil Drills

Interior secretary makes controversial move on Arctic territory

(Newser) - A giant wildlife refuge in Alaska home to caribou and polar bears will soon have something new on the landscape: oil and gas drills. The Department of the Interior on Monday approved a program to dole out drilling leases for a 1.6-million-acre coastal plain in the Arctic National Wildlife...

Trump Has Made Pick to Head Interior Dept., Despite Pushback

Acting department chief David Bernhardt has faced criticism from environmental groups

(Newser) - President Trump said Monday that he's nominating David Bernhardt, a former lobbyist for oil and gas companies and other industries, to head the Interior Department despite objections from environmental groups that Bernhardt already was making regulatory decisions on the country's natural resources to benefit industries. Trump tweeted his...

Dems Slam 'Extraordinary' Move to Keep Parks Open

Is it illegal for officials to tap entrance fees?

(Newser) - The National Park Service is taking an extraordinary—and, it turns out, controversial—step to keep its most popular sites open and safe for visitors during a prolonged government shutdown, the Washington Post reports. The Interior Department's acting secretary, David Bernhardt, has agreed to let park managers use entrance...

Ryan Zinke Out as Interior Secretary

A replacement will be named next week, per President Trump

(Newser) - Late last month, Arizona Rep. Raul Grijalva penned an op-ed asking Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to step down from his post due to a swirl of "scandals and nepotism." It looks like Grijalva is getting his wish: Per Bloomberg , sources reported that Zinke told the White House he'...

Zinke Didn't Like an Op-Ed on Him. Things Got Personal

Interior secretary accuses Rep. Raul Grijalva of alcohol abuse, using tax dollars as 'hush money'

(Newser) - A scathing opinion piece on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, penned by a Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee and published Friday by USA Today , has caught Zinke's attention—and he's offering some eyebrow-raising "thoughts" of his own online. The op-ed by Arizona Rep. Raul Grijalva asked...

'Extensive' Porn Browsing Led to Malware on Gov't Network

USGS employee visited 9K adult sites: inspector general's report

(Newser) - Russian malware found infecting a US government network got the in from a US Geological Survey employee who violated agency rules about watching porn on a government-issued computer. That's according to a Oct. 17 report by the Department of the Interior's inspector general, which found the unnamed employee...

A Big Change Is Proposed to Wildlife Protections

Officials would weigh economic factors in decisions under Endangered Species Act

(Newser) - Those who back the Endangered Species Act won't be happy to read a quote in the New York Times that sums up a story about its fate: "It's probably the best chance that we have had in 25 years to actually make any substantial changes," says...

Bad News, Bears: Obama-Era Rule on Hunting Reversed

New rule to allow bear baiting, spotlights for shooting in dens called 'unethical' by critics

(Newser) - The Trump administration is looking to dismantle Obama-era rules that made it more difficult to hunt on federal lands, including through the banning of bacon, honey, and doughnuts as bear bait. The 2015 rule also barred the use of dogs to hunt bears, spotlights to shoot bear cubs in dens,...

Zinke Tried to Say 'Hello.' He Should've Stuck to English

Interior secretary slammed for acting 'juvenile' at hearing on Japanese-American internment camps

(Newser) - Perhaps Ryan Zinke wanted to show off his foreign language skills at a hearing Thursday, but it ended with reprimands in very plain English. Politico and HuffPost report the Interior secretary attended a gathering of the House Natural Resources Committee and was asked about a commitment to $2 million in...

$139K for 'Secretary's Door' Raises Questions at Interior Dept.

Zinke spokesperson isn't commenting on work order

(Newser) - Records show the Interior Department spent nearly $139,000 last year for construction at the agency that was labeled on a work order as "Secretary's Door," the AP reports. A spokesperson for Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke did not provide answers Thursday to questions about whether changes had...

Shrinking National Monument Was About Oil After All: Report

NYT gets Interior Department emails that contradict Secretary Ryan Zinke

(Newser) - "Bears Ears isn't really about oil and gas," Interior Department Secretary Ryan Zinke said at a news conference in May 2017. Evidence from over 25,000 pages of department emails obtained by the New York Times shows that wasn't necessarily true. Last year President Trump called...

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