NCBA proposes land grazing changes to NEPA

Cattlemen and federal land councils are developing proposals they would like to see implemented during the environmental policy updates.

“When you are talking about transportation projects or water projects or grazing permits, NEPA underpins every single thing we do so for the administration to offer proposed revisions to NEPA for the first time in a number of decades, this is a significant opportunity,” Public Lands Council Executive Director Kaitlynn Glover said.

“NEPA in its current form has become a costly and time-consuming burden for ranchers, with some ranch families facing grazing permit delays as long as 30 years,” NCBA CEO Colin Woodall said in late February. “I want to thank President Trump and his team at CEQ for listening to rural America and bringing common sense back to an outdated law. These proposed changes are welcome news for thousands of ranchers and farmers whose livelihoods depend on NEPA reviews.”