DOI to rescind rule that would have encouraged “no use” on public land

Secretary Doug Burgum: "The most effective caretakers of our federal lands are those whose livelihoods rely on its well-being."

The controversial public lands rule, proposed last year by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), may be gone. This rule would have encouraged “no use” of public land as a major use, competing with recreation, grazing, logging, mining, energy development, and more.

The Department of the Interior is moving to repeal the 2024 Public Lands Rule, which would make “conservation” an official land use. Under this rule, users could apply for land permits with the intention of leaving land untouched and idle, forcing Americans who utilize resources on public land to compete with, in many cases, wealthy NGOs and non-profits who believe use of land is damaging and idealize abandonment.

The energy industry, agricultural producers, and recreation advocates alike protested the rule, saying it contradicted the stated mandate of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)—a “multiple use and sustained yield” mission.

“The previous administration’s Public Lands Rule had the potential to block access to hundreds of thousands of acres of multiple-use land—preventing energy and mineral production, timber management, grazing and recreation across the West,” said DOI Secretary Doug Burgum. “The most effective caretakers of our federal lands are those whose livelihoods rely on its well-being. Overturning this rule protects our American way of life and gives our communities a voice in the land that they depend on.”