Unpopular President Donald Trump’s selection for Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke was happy to have a new gig as Montana’s citizens mobilize against the Republican Party. Like everybody in the Trump administration, Zinke has been able to quickly throw a monkey wrench into the actual workings of the department he heads, recently “freezing” over 200 Land Management advisory boards while he plucks his eyebrows.
Reuters is reporting that state prosecutors in New Mexico, New York, California and Washington are now suing Zinke and the Department of Interior over new coal extraction leases the department has given out on public lands.
State prosecutors for California, New Mexico, New York and Washington are arguing new coal extraction would exacerbate global warming and violate the federal government's statutory duty to use public lands "in a manner that will protect the quality of scientific, scenic, historical, ecological, environmental, air and atmospheric, water resource, and archaeological values," according to the filings.
The move was one of several recent attempts to block a broad pledge by U.S. President Donald Trump to roll back environmental regulations put in place under former President Barack Obama. The former president placed a moratorium on new coal mining leases on public lands more than a year ago, in January 2016.
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The prosecutors argued in addition to harming the environment, more coal mining on public lands would burden state and local governments with expenses related to healthcare, flood control and other infrastructure needs related to potentially harmful effects of nearby mines.
This is the entire Republican Party’s platform—selling off public lands to corporations with dubious environmental track records. Zinke has his hands full, being charged with both handing off public lands to corporations and with trying to figure out loopholes that would allow him to chip away at national monuments.