Conserving Public Lands

Americans share ownership of approximately 640 million acres of land and water in the United States. These public lands include national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, monuments, as well as lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.

CREDIT: AARON KINDLE

Our Work

These often spectacular places are managed by many different federal agencies for a wide variety of purposes, but the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture bear most of the management responsibility. The National Wildlife Federation is committed to safeguarding these special places and other landscapes that provide habitat for wildlife and opportunities for people to recreate and reconnect with nature. Our staff works to conserve these areas for the wildlife and people who depend on them through several different campaigns and initiatives.

• Keeping Public Lands in Public Hands—The National Wildlife Federation works to ensure that federal public lands stay in public hands. Fourteen states, led by the State of Utah, recently supported a lawsuit trying to dispose of federal public lands. This misguided effort could lead to the sell-off of 640 million acres of land to corporate and foreign interests. National parks, forests, wildlife refuges, monuments, lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, and much more are at risk. Join our Halt the Heist campaign to stop this dangerous effort.
• Ensuring Responsible Energy Development— The National Wildlife Federation works to ensure that all energy development– whether oil and gas, renewables, or transmission projects– are developed in ways that support wildlife movement and connectivity, and that avoid or minimize impacts to fish, wildlife and our outdoor traditions.
• Supporting Conservation Program Budgets and Other Conservation Tools—The National Wildlife Federation works at many levels to secure the funding for conservation tools like the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the nation's premier program to acquire new places to recreate outdoors and protect crucial ecosystems. We work with Congress and federal agencies to implement conservation friendly policies, such as conserving big game migration corridors and restoring degraded lands.
• Protecting Special Landscapes—There are some landscapes that have so many wildlife, historical, and cultural values that they require extra protections. For example, the National Wildlife Federation works to prevent industrial development in the iconic Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. We also work for special designations for important landscapes such as the Owyhee Canyonlands in Oregon and the Caja del Rio in New Mexico.