I live across a valley from 400 square miles of mostly BLM mesa-top. No existing grazing permit has ever missed renewal. The only questions that come up are whether or not you can also claim federal support if we don’t make our high-desert minimum rainfall?

On the edge of that grazing area, we had a 3-way swap of hundreds of acres between BLM, a Pueblo tribe – and a car dealer who had planned on building a mansion overlooking the valley. The whole deal took about 2 months.

Yes, the pace can be varied – if the bureaucrats care to speed things up.

Those oil & gas leases required the same approval process as any special use permit on Federal land, usually an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Remember, this is public land, owned by us taxpayers! You can’t just let your cattle out to graze, or erect a solar farm on it, without a permit.

A “fast track” system would be fine, as long as it doesn’t shortcut the social, cultural, and environmental assessment process required by the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). As I’ve debated before, just because it’s renewable, doesen’t automatically make it socially responsible.

I am a strong proponent of renewable energy, by the way. I just happen to believe that it should be done responsibly. 1900 acres of parobolic troughs is alot of mirrors in your backyard if you live in Gila Bend, AZ (fortunately, not many people do).