The Great Land Shake-Up: Biden Admin Seeks To Overhaul Public Land Use For Climate's Sake

The Biden administration aims to prioritize the conservation of vast government-owned lands alongside oil drilling, livestock grazing, and other interests, according to Tracy Stone-Manning, director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The proposal would allow conservationists and others to lease federal land for restoration, similar to how oil companies and ranchers acquire leases for drilling and grazing.

Stone-Manning explained in an interview with The Associated Press that the proposal seeks to address mounting pressure from climate change and development. While the BLM has previously issued conservation leases in limited cases, it has not had a dedicated program for this purpose. The forthcoming rule also aims to establish more areas of "critical environmental concern" due to their historical, cultural, or wildlife conservation significance.

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The conservation proposal has sparked debate over the best use of government-owned land, primarily in the western region. Critics, including Republican lawmakers, argue that it is an attempt to exclude mining, energy development, and agriculture from BLM-controlled land.

The BLM, responsible for managing 380,000 square miles (990,000 square kilometers) of land and regulating publicly owned underground minerals, finds itself at the center of debates regarding the extent of permissible development. The first virtual public meeting on the conservation proposal took place recently, with additional meetings planned in Denver, Reno, and Albuquerque.

U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) argues that the proposed rule is illegal, accusing Interior Secretary Deb Haaland of “giving radicals a new tool to shut out the public,” according to the AP. Stone-Manning countered that critics misunderstand the rule, emphasizing that conservation leases would not supersede existing ones and activities like grazing and hunting would still be allowed.

Environmentalists largely support the idea of conservation leases, with Joel Webster of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership describing the proposal as long overdue, the AP reported. He noted that the administration's plan would establish a process for considering landscapes for conservation without imposing restrictions, but urged officials to ensure the final rule avoids unintended consequences.

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This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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