Interior Department Opens Up 13.1 Million Acres of Federal Land for Coal Leasing

The Energy Department will invest $625 million to ‘expand and reinvigorate’ the coal industry.

Steam rises from a coal power plant in Adamsville, Ala., on April 11, 2021. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

The Department of the Interior (DOI) is putting up millions of acres of federal lands for coal leasing purposes, in line with President Donald Trump’s push to restore energy dominance in the United States, it said in a Sept. 29 statement.

“The Bureau of Land Management is making up to 13.1 million acres of federal coal available for lease, lowering royalty rates to strengthen competitiveness, and streamlining approvals for projects in Montana, Wyoming, Tennessee and beyond,” the DOI said.