As the second year of President Trump’s second term gets underway, the Department of the Interior (DOI) has the responsibility to achieve two of the administration’s priorities: Expanding energy dominance and Making America Beautiful Again. Here are five practical things DOI should pursue to achieve energy dominance, address the affordability crisis, and improve conservation efforts.
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- Invest in hydroelectric- don’t reinvent the wheel, just use it.
In 2024, 24 percent of America’s renewable energy came from hydroelectric. The DOI oversees the nation’s largest wholesale water supplier (through the Bureau of Reclamation) and manages dams on federal land through the National Park Service. The Bureau of Reclamation’s managed hydroelectric plants alone displace approximately 17 million tons of carbon dioxide a year. Most dams in America don’t produce hydroelectric power, but they could. We have over 90,000 dams in America, and only 3 percent of them produce energy. With innovative technologies like pumped storage, hydropower could play a larger role in America’s energy mix.
The Department of Energy (DOE) says hydroelectric power has “relatively low costs” when compared to other electricity sources because of the low maintenance costs. The DOI should continue to coordinate with the DOE under the 2020 federal Hydropower Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to identify areas for cost-effective hydropower. Importantly, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission should more efficiently re-license existing dams. Continuing to tap into the energy in already existing dams is a win for clean, affordable energy, potentially producing enough electricity to power between 3.6 and 4.8 million homes.
- Expedite geothermal energy projects.
Geothermal energy is an untapped potential for cost-effective, clean energy. Since geothermal energy is a baseload energy source, it has the potential to address some of the energy problems facing the nation, especially as our energy needs grow with advancements in AI and data centers. Unfortunately, most of the viable locations to access this energy source in the United States are on federal land. As a result, geothermal developers avoid going through burdensome permitting processes to find opportunities on state and privately owned lands.
The geothermal energy potential on federal land in the U.S. offers a dependable, emissions-free energy source that could lead the way for the development of additional geothermal opportunities in the US. DOI has already acted swiftly to permit three geothermal projects in Nevada and issued new guidance to improve efficiencies for geothermal leasing on federal lands.
The permitting and leasing of geothermal power stations at Casa Diablo Hot Springs near Mammoth Lakes, California (which collectively provide enough energy to power 45,000 homes) are managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Casa Diablo’s fourth power station, which opened in 2022, is a great example of the success DOI can claim, as it provides baseload energy to 20,000 residences while producing zero carbon emissions.
Last year, DOI Secretary Doug Burgum announced that they will begin “the implementation of emergency permitting procedures to expeditiously review geothermal energy projects” as part of the national energy emergency executive order from Donald Trump. This year, the DOI should continue to expedite these permits.
- Streamline permitting for drilling in Alaska.
Drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) has been a permitting battle for over 20 years. Each new administration approves or halts what the last administration started or stopped. In October 2025, Secretary Burgum announced plans to resume drilling efforts previously halted under Biden.
Oil and natural gas remain a critical component of an affordable, reliable, and abundant U.S. energy supply, and these resources are largely responsible for powering the global economy.
The U.S. is a global leader in both production and environmental stewardship, where drilling and environmental standards are significantly higher than in many other parts of the world. As one of the country’s leaders in oil and gas development, Alaska, in particular, has long recognized the importance of balancing natural resource development with environmental protection.
By opening opportunities to capitalize on America’s abundant natural resources, opening ANWR to energy development aligns with the administration’s efforts to achieve energy dominance while continuing to reduce dependence on foreign sources.
- Prevent wildfires with strategic burns
Catastrophic wildfires have been plaguing the Pacific Northwest for the last few years. While wildfires are nothing new for the area, they have become “catastrophic” because of the significant increase in property damage over the last decade. While there is no denying that wildfires are exacerbated by climate change, most media coverage fails to note that the total area burned globally over the last 10 years has decreased. “Catastrophic” wildfires, however, are increasing. As the American Enterprise Institute points out in a recent paper, this perception is likely due to the impact on our wallets, with last year’s fire-related damages costing $224 billion in the US.
To prevent these catastrophic wildfires from continuing to burn up homes and wreak havoc on forest ecosystems, we need to have more prescribed burns. Prescribed burns help remove the highly flammable, dry underbrush that can accelerate wildfires.
These controlled prescribed burns occur at much lower temperatures than catastrophic wildfires, and afterward, they leave nutrient-rich soil, which promotes new tree growth. The DOI has previously endorsed prescribed burns; however, due to excessive litigation from environmental activists, it has been much more difficult to achieve the necessary permits for the burns.
Last year, President Trump responded to the Palisade wildfires with an executive order instructing the DOI to “consider modifying or rescinding, as consistent with applicable law, Federal rules or policies that impede the use of appropriate, preventative prescribed fires.” As we prepare for the 2026 wildfire season, we should continue removing barriers to this ancient practice.
- Support permitting for tree thinning and logging in Alaska
Last year, the USDA announced that it would repeal the 2001 Roadless Rule. This repeal is part of a back-and-forth policy of amending and repealing forest management practices in the Tongass National Forest under the Trump, Biden, and Trump (again) administrations.
The rule was intended to protect specific lands from road construction and logging, despite the economic and environmental benefits. While most of this land management falls under the purview of the USDA and the National Forest Service, the DOI’s Bureau of Land Management testified in favor of exempting the Tongass Forest in 2020.
The old-growth trees in the Tongass could benefit from tree thinning to prevent the spread of diseases and improve carbon absorption, as older trees don’t sequester as much carbon as newly planted trees.
In addition to the environmental benefits, an increase in timber would lower lumber prices, which in turn could help reduce the cost of building new homes. Addressing this issue could help the Trump administration’s affordability campaign and help address the housing shortage we currently face. The DOI should continue to support the USDA’s repeal efforts with additional testimony and support in the year ahead.
As 2026 begins, the Department of the Interior and Secretary Burgum should use the full extent of their existing authority to remove barriers and advance practical energy and land-management solutions. Doing so would help achieve US energy dominance, improve reliability, and ease cost-of-living pressures for American families.
The views and opinions expressed are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of C3.