News sources indicate that the White House will nominate Neil Kornze to be the next Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Korze is currently Principal Deputy Director at BLM. In 2011, Kornze joined the BLM in as a Senior Advisor to the Director. Prior to the BLM, Kornze worked as a Senior Advisor to U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. The appointment awaits nomination and approval.

Sources: Environment & Energy Publishing

A new study predicts that human-induced climate change may mimic similar conditions not seen for more than 115 thousand years. Published in Nature Geoscience, the new study has found that during the Eemian, a period of warming that preceded the last ice age approximately 127-116 thousand years ago, high temperatures caused sea levels to rise almost 30 feet.

EPA – The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is implementing a policy requiring organizations generating or using environmental data under certain Agency-funded assistance agreements to submit documentation of their competency prior to award of the agreement. Because implementation tools are currently being developed by the Agency, EPA is delaying the required effective date of the Policy to October 1, 2013.  [Monday, July 1, 2013 (Volume 78, Number 126)]

Geoscience Policy Federal Register

The House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water and Power held a hearing on May 23, 2013 to discuss two bills pertaining to water resources. 

The first bill, H.R. 745, would reauthorize the Water Desalination Act of 1996 and extend funding for it through the 2018 fiscal year. Representative Grace Napolitano (D-CA) introduced the bill, which awards research grants for projects looking into best practices for water desalination techniques.

Representatives introduced four energy bills in May 2013: the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPR-A) Access Act (H.R. 1964); the Federal Lands Jobs and Energy Security Act (H.R. 1965); the Planning for American Energy Act of 2013 (H.R. 1394); and the BLM Live Internet Auctions Act (H.R. 555). On May 22, 2013, the House Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing to discuss the proposed bills.

The EPA proposed Carbon Pollution Standards under the Clean Air Act to cut carbon pollution from new power plants to improve public health and curb the effects of climate change. According to the EPA, the standards would ensure that new power plants are built with available clean technology, and would coincide with investments in clean energy technologies that are already being made in the power industry.

The House Committee on Appropriations published their fiscal year (FY) 2014 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies appropriations bill this July. The bill met with strong opposition from House Democrats, who lambasted cuts that zero out approximately 20 programs and slash 34% from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) budget. The bill proposes $24.3 billion in total funding; $5.5 billion below FY 2013 levels, or 18 percent decrease. The Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Subcommittee has jurisdiction over many agencies, including the U.S.

On Tuesday, August 6, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) released a white paper entitled The Narrowing Window: America’s Opportunity to Join the Global Gas Trade. The paper provides a set of pro-growth policy recommendations based on in-depth studies and  analysis from a variety of sources, including government agencies, academia, think tanks, and the private sector.

Both the House and Senate passed crucial helium legislation this September to avert the shutdown of the federal helium reserve near Amarillo, Texas. The reserve provides the United States with 40 percent of its helium supply, and is critical for supplying the private sector with helium for hospital equipment, solar panels, and computer silicon chips. H.R. 527, the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013, passed with an amendment by the House and is expected to be signed by President Obama in the coming weeks.