BISMARCK, N.D. – Gov. Kelly Armstrong issued the following statement today in opposition to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finalizing its updated Resource Management Plan (RMP) for North Dakota, despite repeated objections from the state.
The state filed a protest in September with input from more than a dozen state agencies and elected officials who thoroughly reviewed the draft RMP filed earlier this year. The finalized RMP blocks leasing on over 4 million acres, or nearly 99%, of federal coal acreage in North Dakota, and closes off 213,100 acres, or 44%, of federally owned fluid mineral acreage from leasing. It also will cost the state an estimated $34 million per year in revenue from oil and gas royalties and taxes and could eliminate more than 12,000 coal-related jobs in the state. Former Gov. Doug Burgum also filed a final appeal last month, which the BLM denied.
“It’s clear that BLM had no intention of listening to North Dakota and was dead set on imposing this disastrous plan in the waning days of the Biden administration, ignoring our state’s legitimate concerns and unique situation when it comes to mineral ownership,” Armstrong said. “This plan won’t make our state any safer, but it will destabilize our electrical grid, weaken our national security and raise energy costs for consumers in North Dakota and beyond. We will use every tool at our disposal, including working with our congressional delegation and former Gov. Burgum once he’s confirmed as Interior Secretary, to repeal this plan and protect states’ rights.”