The Bundy cattle were a threat to the desert tortoise and eco-system.
Via WISTV:
Conservationists are crying foul over U.S. land managers' initial conclusion that there are no environmental concerns with an off-road race that will cross 650 miles of Nevada desert and cut through a new national monument.
They say the Bureau of Land Management delayed releasing a study of the Aug. 19-20 race until last week to prevent legal challenges.
About 350 trucks, dune buggies, motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles are expected to compete in this year's Best in the Desert Vegas to Reno Race. It's also expected to draw 5,000 spectators and 500 staff members.
The BLM issued its environmental assessment of the proposed race route July 1. Under the National Environmental Policy Act, the public has 30 days – or until Aug. 1 – to comment on it.
The agency then has until Aug. 14 to respond to comments and decide whether to issue a permit for the proposed route, which includes 37 miles of dirt roads inside the Basin and Range National Monument. That's just five days before the race is to begin near Alamo, 100 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
"By rigging the calendar, BLM is trying to preclude any legal challenge because there will not be enough time," said Jeff Ruch, executive director of the nonprofit Public Employees for Environmental Ethics.
"BLM has made a farce out of the entire process," he said.
The BLM said President Obama's monument proclamation allows for motorized vehicles on roads that existed when he created it last summer.