Federal and Public Lands
Federal and Public Lands AP Environmental Science
Federal Land •
National Resource Lands - the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) controls these lands set aside for commercial and recreational uses. Includes federal rangelands. Commercial mining, grazing, and logging allowed
•
National Wildlife Refuges - protected land managed by the Department of Fish and Wildlife; commercial logging allowed with a permit
•
National Forest - forests and grasslands managed by National Forest Service, commercial logging and grazing allowed with a permit
•
National Park - manage and preserve forest and grassland, managed by National Park Service. No commercial resource extraction allowed, recreational use only.
•
Wilderness Preservation Area - for recreation only, logging not allowed
Public Land Management •
Federal government controls about 35% of the land in the US.
•
Major federal agencies: •
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
•
National Forest Service
•
National Park Service
•
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Threats to Public Land •
overuse
•
commercial exploitation
•
pollution
•
habitat destruction and wildlife threats
•
poor management
Solutions •
overuse - issuing fewer and more costly permits
•
commercial exploitation - increase the price of harvesting resources on federal lands; recycling resources to reduce demand for extracting new resources
•
pollution - minimize and clean up polluted area
•
habitat destruction and wildlife threats - decreased tourism traffic and use of land
•
poor management - increase costs of using federal lands, sustainable resource management and conservation procedures, better funding and staffing of federal agencies to allow for increased enforcement of laws.
Land Conservation Strategies •
mitigation - to moderate a problem. For example, by preserving or restoring a wetland in one location to moderate the impact of damaging a wetland elsewhere.
•
restoration- to restore to former condition. Ecosystem restoration involved management actions to facilitate the recovery of an ecosystem.!
•
preservation - to keep or remain intact through reduced and/or sustainable use
•
remediation - to correct or fix. For example, actions to remove a pollutant from an area.
Laws and Policies •
1964 Wilderness Act - established road-free areas within Wildlife Refuges or National parks, restricts activities in these areas
•
1978 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act - protects rivers with important scenic, recreational, fish and wildlife, or other values
•
greenbelts - open or forested areas at the edge of a city; restricts development and limits growth of urban areas; increases quality of life for city dwellers.
Federal Land •
National Resource Lands - the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) controls these lands set aside for commercial and recreational uses. Includes federal rangelands. Commercial mining, grazing, and logging allowed
•
National Wildlife Refuges - protected land managed by the Department of Fish and Wildlife; commercial logging allowed with a permit
•
National Forest - forests and grasslands managed by National Forest Service, commercial logging and grazing allowed with a permit
•
National Park - manage and preserve forest and grassland, managed by National Park Service. No commercial resource extraction allowed, recreational use only.
•
Wilderness Preservation Area - for recreation only, logging not allowed
Public Land Management •
Federal government controls about 35% of the land in the US.
•
Major federal agencies: •
Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
•
National Forest Service
•
National Park Service
•
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Threats to Public Land •
overuse
•
commercial exploitation
•
pollution
•
habitat destruction and wildlife threats
•
poor management
Solutions •
overuse - issuing fewer and more costly permits
•
commercial exploitation - increase the price of harvesting resources on federal lands; recycling resources to reduce demand for extracting new resources
•
pollution - minimize and clean up polluted area
•
habitat destruction and wildlife threats - decreased tourism traffic and use of land
•
poor management - increase costs of using federal lands, sustainable resource management and conservation procedures, better funding and staffing of federal agencies to allow for increased enforcement of laws.
Land Conservation Strategies •
mitigation - to moderate a problem. For example, by preserving or restoring a wetland in one location to moderate the impact of damaging a wetland elsewhere.
•
restoration- to restore to former condition. Ecosystem restoration involved management actions to facilitate the recovery of an ecosystem.!
•
preservation - to keep or remain intact through reduced and/or sustainable use
•
remediation - to correct or fix. For example, actions to remove a pollutant from an area.
Laws and Policies •
1964 Wilderness Act - established road-free areas within Wildlife Refuges or National parks, restricts activities in these areas
•
1978 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act - protects rivers with important scenic, recreational, fish and wildlife, or other values
•
greenbelts - open or forested areas at the edge of a city; restricts development and limits growth of urban areas; increases quality of life for city dwellers.
