Public Lands Project
US Public Lands and Climate Change
America’s public lands are at the forefront of the climate crisis.
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The federal government owns roughly 640 million acres, about 28% of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States. Four major federal land management agencies administer 606.5 million acres of this land (as of September 30, 2018). They are the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and National Park Service (NPS) in the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Forest Service (FS) in the Department of Agriculture.
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Research from the U.S. Geological Survey has found that fossil fuels extracted from public lands and waters are responsible for nearly a quarter of the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions.
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To transform America’s public lands and waters from a source of greenhouse gas emissions into a cornerstone of an ambitious climate strategy, the U.S. government must develop and implement a comprehensive and aggressive public lands climate plan to reduce emissions from fossil fuel extraction, increase renewable energy development, and protect and restore natural landscapes across the country.
State and local Leagues, and individual League members, have a critical role to play in helping to limit future climate change and protect the planet.
Join the LWVUS Climate Action Interest Group and become part of the TEAM
Read Why Oceans are Part of the Climate Solution
Presentations
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Colorado River Interim Guidelines Negotiations: A Historic Moment for the Colorado River: Watch On Demand
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2018 The Wilderness Society: In the Dark: The Hidden Climate Impacts of Energy Development on Public Lands
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2020 House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis: Solving the Climate Crisis
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2020 The Wilderness Society: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Public Lands
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2020 Utah LWV Study: UTAH'S TRANSITION TO CLEAN ENERGY (2020)
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2020 Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute: The Utah Roadmap
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2020 Sutherland Institute Congressional Series: Confessions of a Climate Conservative