Statement: Secretarial Orders prioritize public input, and establishes Climate Task Force

April 16, 2021 — The Department of the Interior has been deeply entrenched in a review process to weed out orders that are not in line with the Biden Administration’s priorities, and this week passed Secretarial Order 3399, and Secretarial Order 3398, committing to building an equitable and just energy future, and prioritizing public input from impacted communities that have historically been underrepresented in the environmental review process.  

Secretarial Order 3399 has established a Climate Task Force that will accelerate renewable energy development, and provide guidance on the role that science should play in decision-making processes at the Department of the Interior. It also provides policy instruction to ensure that climate change is appropriately analyzed, and that Tribes, and frontline communities are appropriately engaged. Secretarial Order 3398 revokes previous orders that are not in line with the Department’s vision to protect public health, land, water, and wildlife.  

Interior is also taking a serious approach in tackling the climate crisis, highlighting the role that science must play in the protection of our public lands and waters. 

“For too long, environmental justice communities have disproportionately experienced the impacts of climate change,” said Camilla Simon, Executive Director of Hispanics Enjoying Camping, Hunting, and the Outdoors (HECHO). “HECHO applauds the Department of the Interior’s Secretarial Orders that prioritize the public input of Black, Indigenous, and people of color communities that have not been a part of the process to weigh in on projects taking place in their own communities.”