Public Lands

Solar Panel on a Wind Turbine

Energy Issues at Stake in New Mexico Land Commission Election

Unlike energy issues that will appear in the form of ballot initiatives on Tuesday in three western states, voters in New Mexico will cast their energy vote in their choice for state land commissioner, an arcane position with considerable authority.

November 4, 2018 - NPR

Lake Powell

Utah's Campaign to Deregulate Public Lands

Newly obtained documents reveal the extent of the state's efforts to strip protections from federal lands around the United States.

October 17, 2018 - Pacific Standard

Surveying

Toronto Mayoral Candidate Suggests Repurposing City Golf Courses

Former chief planner Jennifer Keesmaat wants to transform three failing golf courses into free public spaces.

October 9, 2018 - The Toronto Star

Monument Review: Recreation a Larger Economic Benefit Than Ranching and Timber Combined

Why is the Department of Interior considering a reduction of the size of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument?

July 5, 2018 - Oregon Public Broadcasting

Landscape near the Craters of the Moon in South Central Idaho

Public Lands Score Two Political Victories in Idaho Governor's Race

It's been a tough couple of years for advocates of public lands. Could the cause of conserving and protecting public lands be gaining public support in a staunchly conservative state?

May 27, 2018 - Pacific Standard

Oil Drills

Meet the Online Platform for Selling Off Public Lands

EnergyNet auctions off oil and gas leases for state and federal lands—and business is booming under the Trump Administration.

January 22, 2018 - Outside Online

National Monuments

Trump to Drastically Reduce Two National Monuments in Utah

The controversy regarding the federal protection of public lands in the American west is heading into new territory as President Trump tests the limits of presidential powers.

December 4, 2017 - The Washington Post

New Mexico Backcountry

Previously Inaccessible Wilderness Area in New Mexico Could Finally Open to the Public

The Sabinoso Wilderness is designated public land, but it's completely surrounded by private property. That could soon change.

August 29, 2017 - High Country News

Bears Ears National Monument

Interior Secretary Wants to Reduce Bears Ears National Monument

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, in an early decision to come of a nationwide review of national monument designations, recommends that President Trump reduce the size of Bears Ears National Monument.

June 14, 2017 - The Wall Street Journal

National Monuments

Antiquities Act Executive Order Calls for Review of Large Designations

The Executive Order does not roll back the Antiquities Act nor rescind any designations made by presidents Clinton, George W. Bush, or Obama, but does call for their review if over 100,000 acres. President Trump feels that the act has been misused.

April 28, 2017 - The Washington Post

Kayaking

Rhetoric Over Public Lands Heating Up in Washington, D.C.

As the Outdoor Industry Association gathered for its annual advocacy trip to Washington, D.C., the industry is marshaling its resources for an expected political battle with the Trump Administration.

April 26, 2017 - The Denver Post

Open Space

House Republicans: No More 'Planning 2.0' for Public Lands

The congressional battle over public lands is only just beginning. The latest action: the House voted to rescind the Bureau of Land Management's recently approved "Planning 2.0" rule.

February 9, 2017 - The Denver Post

National Monuments

Revoking a National Monument Not Easy, Even with Republican Congress

But that's no reason not to try, figures Republican Rep. Rob Bishop of Utah, chair of the powerful House Natural Resources Committee, who has his sights on the Bears Ears National Monument, barely a month old.

February 8, 2017 - NPR

Get Ready for a Wave of Federal Land Transfers in Western States

It's the antithesis of what former President Obama and his predecessors did when they gave federal lands and waters more protection. But don't blame Trump's executive actions for this one (not yet, anyway), as it's being proposed by Congress.

January 29, 2017 - The Guardian

Stunning Acquittal of Defendants in Standoff with Feds at Oregon Wildlife Refuge

Will the acquittal of seven defendants in a U.S. district court who used force to occupy the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon last January embolden other takeovers of public lands by resentful ranchers or militia?

October 31, 2016 - High Country News

Google Maps Erases Publically Owned Open Spaces

Where's the green?

September 23, 2016 - NPR

Wise Use Movement Galvanizes Oregon Wildlife Refuge Occupation

In an news analysis for The New York Times Sunday Review, Alan Feuer sees the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Harney County, Oregon as another struggle between the Wise Use movement, which began is the 1980s, and the mainstream.

January 11, 2016 - The New York Times

Wild Horses BLM

Ranchers and Activists Face Off Over Wild Horses

Tens of thousands of wild horses still inhabit the western states. The Bureau of Land Management is caught between two camps: ranchers who want them contained and advocates who want them to roam free.

December 5, 2015 - Pacific Standard

House Approves Defense Bill; Compromises on Protections of Public Lands

As part of a compromise, the most ambitious public lands package in years was approved earlier this week by the House of Representatives as an addendum to a must-pass defense bill.

December 8, 2014 - Los Angeles Times

Marshaling a Grab for Public Land in the Western United States

Faced with the prospect of states seizing control of federal lands to potentially sell to private owners, a resident of New Mexico argues against "the land grab out west."

October 28, 2014 - The New York Times

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