Department of Interior

The players: Obama’s people

Obama’s green team Joe Romm says, “I honestly don’t know if it is politically possible to preserve a livable climate — but if it is, these are the people to make it happen.” I don’t know if I’d go that far, but Obama has certainly put together a team capable of great things. Coordinating is […]

Salazar sends mixed signals on offshore drilling

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar indicated on Tuesday that he intends to scrap the Bush administration's leasing plan that would have opened the coasts to drilling, even as he said the Obama administration is open to some expanded development of offshore oil and gas fields.

The Bush administration's DOI issued a draft of a five-year leasing plan several days before leaving office, following on the expiration of the outer continental shelf moratorium last fall. But Salazar told the Associated Press that his department plans to work with Congress to craft "a plan that makes sense" for offshore oil and gas development in the context of a broader energy policy.

Though he didn't elaborate on areas that might be off-limits, Salazar advocated for some level of protection, which is an improvement, since currently there is nothing protecting the coasts. "There are places that are appropriate for exploration and development and there are places that are not," he said.

Today's Wall Street Journal chose to focus on Salazar's refusal to rule out trying to reinstitute the offshore drilling ban. Under the headline "Offshore Drilling on the Table" (sub. req'd.), the newspaper reported:

"Asked about the Bush administration's proposal to open certain areas of the East and West coasts to drilling and whether he saw any opportunities for expanded development of the nation's offshore areas, Mr. Salazar said: "When you look at the whole [outer continental shelf], it's a huge potential. And it has to be done carefully. We don't want to ruin the beaches of Florida and the coastlines of other places that are sensitive. On the other hand, there are places where it may be appropriate for us to have reconnaissance and exploration and even development. Those are questions that we are exploring and hopefully over the months ahead we'll have answers to these questions."

Salazar taps Clinton's deputy secretary as his own, and other Interior news

Clinton-era deputy interior secretary David Hayes has been tapped to reprise that role in the Obama administration, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced on Thursday. Hayes led Obama's transition efforts for the Interior Department as well as the EPA, USDA, and the Energy Department.

Hayes is a partner at the law firm and lobby shop Latham & Watkins, where he is the "global chair" of the Environment, Land & Resources Department. From that post, he lobbied on behalf of Sempra Energy in 2006.

He is currently a senior fellow at the World Wildlife Fund, a senior fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute, and vice chair of the board at American Rivers. Hayes has also served as chair of the board of the Environmental Law Institute.

In other Interior news, Salazar met with department employees on Thursday to talk about his plans for the agency. "We will ensure Interior Department decisions are based on sound science and the public interest and not special interests," he said.

Salazar promises to ‘clean up mess’ at Interior, looks like a shoo-in for confirmation

Ken Salazar. At his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday, Interior Secretary nominee Ken Salazar said he would promote sound environmental and energy policies through his role in the new administration. His former colleagues on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee seemed to think he'd do a fine job.</p> <p>Salazar pledged to "clean up the mess" […]

Is Ken Salazar 'too nice' to head Interior?

The New York Times editorial page thinks Ken Salazar is too nice to head the Department of Interior:

The word on Ken Salazar ... is that he is friendly, approachable, a good listener, a genial compromiser and a skillful broker of deals. That is also the rap on Ken Salazar.

What the Interior Department needs right now is someone willing to bust heads when necessary and draw the line against the powerful commercial groups -- developers, ranchers, oil and gas companies, the off-road vehicle industry -- that have long treated the department as a public extension of their private interests.

Conservationists and pretty much everyone else exhausted by the Bush administration's ideological rigidity and deference to commercial interests have welcomed Mr. Salazar's appointment. The Colorado Democrat has a solid voting record on issues involving wilderness and wildlife protection and can be expected to bring a strong conservation ethic to the top of the department.

Yet that will not be nearly enough to reform and reinvigorate the department. The Interior Department is an unusually balkanized agency, with eight separate divisions charged with managing 500 million acres of public land in a way that balances private and public claims. It is essential that Mr. Salazar find the right people to run each of these fiefs, and find ways to make them work intelligently and harmoniously in the nation's interest.

Colorado gov. taps Denver schools chief to fill Salazar's seat

Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter has asked Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet to take over the Senate seat being vacated by Ken Salazar, President-elect Obama's pick to run the Interior Department. An official announcement from Ritter is expected tomorrow, according to several media reports.

From Bennet's official bio:

He worked for six years prior to his tenure at the City of Denver as Managing Director for the Anschutz Investment Company in Denver, where he had direct responsibility for the investment of over $500 million. He led the reorganizations of four distressed companies including Forcenergy (which later merged with Denver-based Forest Oil), Regal Cinemas, United Artists and Edwards Theaters, which together required the restructuring of over $3 billion in debt. Bennet also managed, on behalf of Anschutz, the consolidation of the three theater chains into Regal Entertainment Group, the largest motion picture exhibitor in the world. Prior to moving to Denver, Bennet served as Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton Administration.

Bennet earned his bachelor's degree in history with honors from Wesleyan University and his law degree from Yale Law School, where he was the Editor-in-Chief of The Yale Law Journal.

Bennet served as the chief of staff to Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper for two years before being tapped to take over as superintendent in 2005. He is also a former Coro Foundation Public Affairs fellow, served as a personal assistant to Ohio Governor Richard F. Celeste, and clerked for Judge Francis D. Murnaghan on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. He worked for a brief time at the law firm of Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering in Washington, D.C.

Read more on Bennet from the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News.

Green groups divided over choice of Salazar to head Interior

Ken Salazar. Ken Salazar, Obama’s choice to head the Department of the Interior, is provoking controversy in the environmental community. Many activists, particularly among grassroots conservation groups in the West, are criticizing the pick, while some industry interests and big, mainstream green groups are praising Salazar. The opponents have been the most outspoken so far. […]

Green groups propose nominees for lower-level admin posts

With Obama’s environment-oriented Cabinet posts now filled, some in the green community are floating the names of individuals they’d like to see in lower-level positions in the administration. The “Green Plum Book” [PDF], put out by the Arabella Legacy Fund on behalf of “several of the nation’s most significant conservation leaders,” lists the names and […]

Where does Interior pick Salazar stand on key environmental issues?

What does Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar’s likely appointment to head the Department of Interior mean for environmental and energy policy? A few episodes from his congressional career may shed some light. Salazar has only been in the Senate since 2005, so he hasn’t racked up a lengthy voting record. His lifetime score from the League […]