SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — An environmental activist knowingly broke the law when he bid on parcels of land near Utah’s national parks during an oil and gas lease auction, later making public statements that it was an act of civil disobedience and he was prepared to go to prison, a federal appeals court ruled Friday in affirming the man’s conviction.

Tim DeChristopher had sought relief from the 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, claiming his conviction should be overturned because his actions were a form of civil disobedience intended to protect the environment from an auction he believed to be illegal, among other assertions.