【Black Magic Mask (2023)】

The Black Magic Mask (2023)Trump administration's big infrastructure plan, unveiled Monday, amounts to the largest rewrite of one of the nation's bedrock environmental laws in decades. It would dramatically speed up the permitting of all sorts of structures -- not just roads and bridges, and even lead to the bizarre possibility that oil and gas pipelines could be swiftly approved for National Park Service lands.

Yes, that's right, the infrastructure plan would allow for faster approval of constructing oil pipelines to go through our national parks. The plan, if enacted, would accomplish this by giving the Interior secretary the authority to approve a pipeline project on Park Service-administered land, as is currently done with electrical transmission lines and water infrastructure.

SEE ALSO: Cyclone Gita, the strongest storm of 2018, slams tiny Pacific island nation of Tonga

Currently, though, if you want to build an oil pipeline through, say, Glacier National Park in Montana, you need a specific act of Congress in order to allow it. But the Trump administration sees that as a barrier to the swift creation of jobs, and the transport of more oil and gas.

"Obtaining congressional approval for each pipeline crossing and facilities necessary for the production of energy is time consuming and delays construction of needed natural gas pipeline facilities," the infrastructure plan released by the White House states.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The U.S. is one of the largest producers of oil and gas in the world, a fact that the Trump administration seems to remind the American people about nearly every day.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

Under the Trump administration, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has been aggressively promoting oil and gas drilling on public lands, including by taking the unusual step of dramatically shrinking a national monument and then opening up much of that region to drilling.

As one might expect, environmentalists are blasting the infrastructure proposal, and many on both sides of the aisle are pointing out how it dramatically alters the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA, which governs the environmental review process for new federal construction.

Via Giphy

The short version is that the Trump administration wants to drastically cut environmental reviews under NEPA, ostensibly to speed up review times for projects. However, this also opens up the possibility of building roads, bridges, pipelines and other infrastructure that ends up harming the environment.

The climate change advocacy group 350.org came out harshly against the infrastructure plan.

“This is a climate-wrecking fossil fuel infrastructure plan that fast-tracks pipelines at the expense of frontline communities and working people. This flies in the face of everything we know about climate science," said 350.org executive director May Boeve in a statement.

The infrastructure plan is not likely to get far in Congress, at least not anytime soon, but it demonstrates the White House's priorities. Also, some of its proposals could be undertaken through executive orders or other regulatory means, which makes them important to keep an eye on.

---

Featured Video For You

---

2017 is about to be one of the hottest years of all time

---

• Social Good
• Science
• Shopping
• Deals
• Digital Culture
• Entertainment
• Games
• Tech

• Left-Wing Hypomania
• Speaking American
• Tonga's beloved shirtless flagbearer returns for Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony
• The Morning News Roundup for July 11, 2014
• Sophie Kemp
• Passional Affinities by Adee Braun
• Comfort Food by Sadie Stein
• Google Keep is about to become a lot more useful
• Social Justice Tourism
• Brands suspend advertising on X after ads appear alongside Nazi content

• RCB vs. GT 2024 livestream: Watch IPL for free
• Best LEGO Store Star Wars Day deals 2024
• BaichuanAI secures $300 million in funding from Alibaba and Tencent · TechNode
• Wordle today: The answer and hints for May 3
• Giant bear 747 gets walloped in a gnarly bear cam fight
• Best Xbox game deal: Get 'Star Wars: Squadrons' for just $1.99 on the Microsoft Store
• East Buy launches paid membership program as it chases new income source · TechNode
• Books about consumerism and climate change to buy on Amazon Prime Day
• Temu has caught up with rival Shein in single
• World first: All

• Strangers in our Midst
• How to make an activity private on Strava
• How to add and easily switch between accounts on TikTok
• Rules of Civility
• The Spies of Others
• Simone Biles withdraws from artistic gymnastics women's team final at Olympics
• What's new to streaming and theaters this week
• How Far Should a Writer Go to Police His Public Image?
• Between a Rock and a God Place
• Highs in the Mid

• Old Master
• Tonga's beloved shirtless flagbearer returns for Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony
• Linus Tech Tips halts production to address content errors
• Highs in the Mid
• A Good Death
• Simone Biles withdraws from artistic gymnastics women's team final at Olympics
• Interview: Director Angel Manuel Soto on Latine cultural influences in 'Blue Beetle'
• Alice Munro on Censorship
• The Eye of the Beholder
• Highs in the Mid