The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) is leading opposition after the Trump administration released plans to open more than 1 million acres of California public lands and mineral rights to oil and gas drilling across Southern California, the Central Valley, Central Coast and Bay Area.
The organization warns that the proposal threatens lands near Pinnacles National Park, Mount Diablo State Park and the Carrizo Plain National Monument.
“California’s public lands are a refuge for human wonder and beautiful wildlife,” said CBD attorney Victoria Bogdan Tejeda, vowing legal action.
The organization previously halted similar 2019 plans through settlement agreements and argues the new Bureau of Land Management analyses remain inadequate. CBD said drilling would endanger species such as San Joaquin kit foxes and California condors while worsening pollution in already-burdened communities, despite California’s recent efforts to curb drilling and fracking.
