The House of Representatives passed the National Strategic and Critical Mineral Production Act, in a 246-178 vote. If enacted, the bill will expedite government review of gold, silver, copper, and uranium mining on federal land. Supporters of the bill suggest the bill will help create jobs by reducing waiting periods for new mining projects, which can linger up to 10 years; opponents suggest that it would weaken environmental protections.

On June 6, 2013, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a full committee hearing to review programs and activities of the Department of the Interior (DOI). Witness testimony from Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell addressed the various programs and activities of the Department, as well as issues DOI will face in the future.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) released a report on August 13 that criticizes the failure of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to take account of climate change in risk assessment. The report is part of a larger effort by UCS to convince the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to account for climate impacts on flooding in its policies. The report comes before the planned initiation of increased premiums for risky buildings, which will be done by the NFIP on October 1.

The U.S. Geological Survey is launching an experimental program to map man-made structures and facilities in the state of Colorado. Using an internet mapping application, volunteers can help USGS update The National Map by modifying or adding information about features such as schools and fire stations. If the pilot program in Colorado is successful, this volunteer-based mapping will be expanded to other areas. 

Researchers from Stanford University and the University of California-Santa Cruz have released a study that provides a new perspective on the future of Earth’s oil supply. The study concludes that the demand for oil, rather than the supply, will reach a peak and then begin to decline.

House lawmakers must wait to consider legislation that intends to streamline hardrock mine permitting on federal lands. Introduced by Representative Mark Amodei (R-NV) in February, the National Strategic and Critical Minerals Act of 2013 (H.R. 761) hopes to increase domestic production of critical and strategic minerals on federal lands by setting  permitting and litigation time limits on proposed mining projects, and establishing a lead permitting agency to increase efficiency.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report that describes and compares 52 bills introduced in the 113th Congress that directly address climate change. The CRS also issued a report on federal climate change funding from fiscal year (FY) 2008 through the President’s request for FY2014. More than 75% of the $77 billion for climate change activities from FY 2008 to FY2013 was to fund technology development and deployment.

On May 23, 2013 the United States Forest Service (USFS) proposed a rule under the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-011) that would clarify regulations for the management and protection of paleontological recourses on Forest Service lands.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced that the comment period for the proposed rule to amend the BLM's commercial oil shale regulations has been reopened for 30 days. This rule would amend certain environmental protection requirements and issues about the royalty system for shale oil resources.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) has released several interactive maps that combine real-time data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Hurricane Center with maps showing the nation’s energy infrastructure and resources. These maps, released as peak hurricane season approaches, serve to better illustrate the potential impact of a storm for industry, government decisions makers, and the general public. The new maps are available at any time on the EIA’s Energy Disruptions webpage.