Public Lands
Public lands are areas owned by the government and held for all citizens, including national forests, parks, refuges, and rangelands. This area covers who owns them, how they are managed, and how they are protected. Federal agencies, states, tribes, and the public all have a stake in how they are used.
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Topics in Public Lands
Ownership and care
Federal Public Lands covers the land owned by the United States and the agencies that manage it, and Public Lands Management covers how plans and permits decide between uses such as grazing, energy, and recreation.
Protection
Land Conservation covers the tools that keep land from being developed or overused.
All Articles on Public Lands
The Fight Over America’s Public Lands
Explains who controls America's public lands, how four federal agencies split the job, and why grazing rules and monument fights keep shifting.
How Offshore Oil Drilling Rights Are Decided in the United States
Decisions about offshore oil and gas drilling—whether to sell new leases, hold sales, or ban development—are not made by a single person or agency.…
A Landowner’s Guide to the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)
The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is a cornerstone voluntary federal initiative administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA). Its…
Challenges Facing the Department of the Interior
The DOI has faced challenges in areas such as environmental policy, land management, tribal relations, resource extraction, and climate change.
What the Department of the Interior Does
The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) is a Cabinet-level department of the federal government responsible for overseeing America's vast natural and cultural resources.…