On this week’s Wild Line, we cover major developments in federal public lands policy, intensifying negotiations over the Colorado River, the Trump administration’s renewed push for oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and the rollback of climate journalism at the Washington Post. We also share timely opportunities for public comment and mark the passing of a giant in the conservation movement.

Senate Committee Advances Public Lands Bills

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources advanced a slate of public lands and water bills this week, moving forward legislation that could limit Bureau of Land Management travel planning in Utah and block wilderness protections at Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida. The bills advanced despite objections from committee Democrats, raising concerns about long-term land stewardship and agency authority.

Colorado River States Scramble Toward a Deal

Governors and negotiators from Colorado River Basin states say they are “on a path” toward a new water agreement as deadlines loom. Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs made clear that Arizona will not accept deeper cuts unless Upper Basin states also agree to mandatory reductions. With Lake Mead levels still under pressure and the 1922 Colorado River Compact potentially headed back to court, tensions remain high as summer operational deadlines approach.

Trump Administration Reopens Path to Drilling in ANWR

The Department of the Interior has launched a 30-day Call for Nominations and Comments, the first formal step toward a new oil and gas lease sale on the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. While designed primarily for industry input, this process opens the door to renewed drilling in one of the most ecologically and culturally significant landscapes in the country.

We heard from Alex Cohen, government affairs director at Alaska Wilderness League, about what’s at stake and how the public can respond:

The impacts of energy development, even the first exploratory process of this is a permanent damage on the tundra. And it just doesn’t get better. doesn’t know there’s no plant growth that repairs this. You’re talking about centuries in which it takes to repair the ecosystem and the impacts on the wildlife of the Arctic Refuge, too. If you’re going to do energy development here and oil and gas, you are going to potentially kill calving polar bears and caribou. You’re going to disrupt the many hundreds of thousands of birds that migrate there each year. And in particular, Gwich’in people who we work quite closely with, they depend on the caribou, the porcupine caribou, which calf in the coastal plain. That is how they do their subsistence living and how they get their meat for the winter. The caribou have the largest land migration of any mammal and they go up there to the coastal plain. They have their calves and then they bring them back south and east and to have any disruption of a caribou herd, which recent estimates have declining almost 50 % since 2017 is just truly disastrous for the whole region.

Take Action:
Visit Alaska Wilderness League’s action page and the Bureau of Land Management comment portal, open through March 5.

Cumberland Island Comment Deadline Extended

The public comment period for the Cumberland Island National Seashore Visitor Use Management Plan has been extended to February 21. The proposal could shape wilderness protections, public access, and wildlife habitat on one of Georgia’s most unique barrier islands.

Take Action:
View Wild Cumberland’s comment guide which includes an interactive map of proposed changes.

Washington Post Slashes Climate Desk

The Washington Post announced deep layoffs this week, including major cuts to its climate reporting team. Once considered among the strongest climate desks in the country, the reductions raise serious questions about the future of trusted climate journalism at a time when it is most needed.

Remembering Walt Mintkeski

We close by honoring the life and legacy of Walt Mintkeski, a foundational figure in Oregon’s conservation movement. From watershed restoration to statewide ballot measures, Walt’s leadership helped shape decades of environmental advocacy and inspired countless others to step into the work.

Next Week

That’s our report for February 6, 2026.

We’ll be back next week with more land stories that matter.

Make sure you vote in our weekly sticker polls all month long.

Until then — Act Up and Run Wild.

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