ForestWatch GIS analysis finds proposed lease parcels overlap Health Protection Zones and protected wildlife habitat
Last week, the Trump administration announced plans to auction nearly 36,000 acres of federal public land and mineral estate in four California counties to oil companies. The parcels cover thousands of acres adjacent to Carrizo Plain National Monument in San Luis Obispo and western Kern counties. A new GIS analysis by Los Padres ForestWatch found that portions of the proposed lease sale overlap verified Health Protection Zones and the Lokern-Buena Vista and Chico Martinez Areas of Critical Environmental Concern.
A public comment period on the proposal closes on August 1.
The interactive map below shows lands opened for oil and gas leasing and proposed parcels included in the 2026 lease sale, anticipated for December.
The lands targeted in the lease sale include nearly 13,000 acres of federal land and mineral estate in the Temblor Range along the boundary of the Carrizo Plain National Monument. The Carrizo Plain National Monument—often called California’s Serengeti—is a 250,000-acre expanse of golden grasslands and stark ridges adjacent to Los Padres National Forest representing one of the last undeveloped remnants of the southern San Joaquin Valley ecosystem. It is also home to one of the largest concentrations of endangered and rare plants and animals in California, including San Joaquin kit foxes, blunt-nosed leopard lizards, giant kangaroo rats, burrowing owls, and California jewelflowers.
The announcement—issued by the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM)—included parcel numbers, acreage, and ownership information. Using the newly released GIS files, ForestWatch completed a detailed mapping analysis of the proposed lease sale. The analysis found that nearly 3,500 acres overlap designated Health Protection Zones, including schools and parks, while approximately 900 acres within the Lokern-Buena Vista and more than 400 acres within the Chico Martinez Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC), protected landscapes managed for rare species and sensitive habitat.
Many of the properties included in the lease sale are federally owned land, but some “split-estate” parcels include federally owned mineral rights underlying private property. It is unknown whether the Bureau has notified affected landowners of the sale.
The announcement also comes as Trump’s Bureau of Land Management has proposed sweeping changes to regulations governing fossil fuel development on public lands across the country. The proposed changes would make it easier for oil companies to lease public lands, reduce public input in the leasing process, and leave taxpayers to foot the bill for cleanup costs.
Lease sales are competitive auctions where the winning bidder receives the right to drill for oil. Parcels often are leased for $2.00 per acre, which is the minimum bid amount under federal law.
“This is the Trump administration’s public lands agenda in plain view: give oil companies cheap access to public resources, slash the safeguards meant to protect taxpayers from cleanup costs, and throw up roadblocks for renewable energy while forcing more drilling on California against the state’s will,” said Benjamin Pitterle, Director of Advocacy and Field Operations at Los Padres ForestWatch. “It’s a shame to see our public lands mismanaged this way.”
The BLM expects the lease sale to take place in December. If it proceeds, it would be the first lease sale in California since 2020 and the largest in the state since at least 2009.