Public Lands
Public Lands
Land conservation is an integral component to solving both the extinction and climate crises, increasing equitable access to nature, and ensuring everyone’s history and connections to US lands are honored and celebrated.
Sawtooth National Recreation Area
What are public lands?
Public lands are outdoor spaces and historic sites that are overseen by government agencies for the public. These places are also the homelands of many Indigenous peoples. More and more, Tribal nations are collaborating with government agencies as part of their continued stewardship of these landscapes.
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees 245 million acres of lands and waters across the United States, making it the largest land-management agency in the country. These lands are critical to wildlife, water, cultural resource protection, outdoor recreation, and climate resilience.
Hiking in Yosemite National Park. Photo by Eliza Earle.
Why are public lands important?
These lands provide open space and clean water for our communities, critical habitats for native plants and animals, and connections to our history and culture. They are also the last stronghold for many threatened ecosystems and species such as bears, bison, caribou, and other wildlife that need room to roam. They also provide our families with the opportunities to get outside together and create lifelong memories.
840M
40%
of the US is public land
Our Publicly Managed Lands Are At Risk
The majority of our public lands do not have ANY form of protection from development or extractive industries, and now the Trump administration is trying to hand over more public lands to polluters. Only the vigilant support of the people and organizations that work to protect and preserve these lands will ensure that they stay open for all.
Victory!
People across the country spoke up and stopped Donald Trump and Congress from selling off millions of acres of public land to private developers. When Senator Mike Lee and Donald Trump tried to sneak a huge public land sell-off into the budget reconciliation process, the response from the public was swift and uniform. They would not stand to see these treasured places where we hike, fish, camp, hunt, and explore sold off for pennies on the dollar.
What We Are Doing
Valley of Fire State Park, NV. Photo by Irene Yee.
Donald Trump has personally directed a massive effort to strip protections of public lands and waters to enable polluting industrial development. Political leaders and corporate interests continue pushing to sell off public lands, weaken land management agencies, expand logging, and open protected areas to oil and gas drilling and mining.
Sierra Club is fighting to protect public lands from the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress who want to make it easier to sell off and privatize public lands, eliminate conservation areas, and remove the public’s voice from decisions about the future of our shared landscapes.
What You Can Do
Tell Congress: Keep Polluters' Hands Off Public Lands!
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