Protecting America’s Public Lands
Roughly 300 million acres of American lands, most in the West, are set aside as public lands and maintained using taxes paid by all Americans. These lands managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, and National Wildlife Refuge System are by charter supposed to be managed for multiple uses including recreation and provision of wildlife habitat and clean water sources. Increasingly, however, they are run for the benefit of extractive industries and with little regard for the preservation of the rare wildlife or iconic natural beauty for which they are famous.
With the help of conscientious range management specialists, scientists, law enforcement officers and other workers within these agencies, PEER is uncovering how our precious national heritage is being sold to the highest bidder, often under the direction of poorly qualified and illegally appointed political appointees.
Grazing Reform
Livestock grazing allows heavily subsidized private operators to degrade our public lands.
Plastic Free Parks
Our national parks are drowning in a rising tide of plastic waste.
Cell Tower Invasion
Cell phone towers spread across national parks without proper planning and public input.
Off-Road Wreckreation
Off-road vehicle abuse is a growing problem on our public lands, especially in the West.
Oil and Gas Drilling
Environmental and public health risks are being ignored by regulatory agencies and decisions heavily influenced by profit-driven industries.
“Orphaned” Park Wilderness
Twenty-five million acres of recommended wilderness in our national park system are in limbo, marooned by politics.
Park Service Employee Outreach Effort with Unsettling Results Shelved Since 2018
A detailed examination of the toxic work culture within the National Park Service (NPS) has gathered dust for the past three years despite promises that it would be used as a critical tool for healing. NPS commissioned an outreach campaign called “NPS Voices” that engaged staff in a series of in-person and web-based listening sessions. All NPS employees were invited to participate in what top officials called “a cornerstone in our efforts to change the culture that has allowed harassment to persist.” Unfortunately, shelving the report likely had the opposite impact on morale.
A New Era for the Bureau of Land Management
In January and February of 2021, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) conducted a series of in-depth phone interviews with current and former Bureau of Land Management (BLM) employees from nine states from Headquarters, State Offices and Field Offices. The purpose of this survey was to identify steps the Biden administration can take to strengthen the institutional capacity of the BLM to better address conservation and climate change goals. read the report»
NEWS FROM PEER
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Shaving Livestock Grazings Carbon Hoofprint
Complaints Target BLM Neutral Stance on Livestock Grazing Climate Impacts
Park Plastic Bottle Bans Work but Remain Few and Far Between
Number of Parks Ending Bottled Water Sales Has Plateaued as Industry Pushes Back
Political Science Herding Grand Canyon Cattalo
Park Service Should Not Classify Hybridized Beefalo as Native Wildlife
Wiring National Parks Creates Conflicts
Commercial Cell Service Clashes with National Park Policies and Values
Move to Cede Crown Jewel Refuge to Tribe
Impasse on National Bison Range Partnership Agreement Spurs Handover Scenario
National Park Rangers Under The Gun
Nine-Fold Increase in Attacks During 2001
Alaskan Refuge Moose Hunting Cabin Draws Scrutiny
Phony Claim of Scientific Research Masks Violations to Benefit Manager’s Cronies
Indiana Dunes Pavilion Project Hits Big New Snag
National Park Services Finds Several Project Aspects Non-compliant
Everglades Python Hunt Would Set Terrible Precedent
Publicity Stunt Not Expected to Reduce Exotic Snake Population in National Park
Park Service Misled the Public on Plant Harvest Plan
Public Comment Reopened Due to Unsupported Statements in Federal Register Notice
Park Service Snoozes Through Effigy Mounds Wake up Call
Park Service Snoozes Through Effigy Mounds Wake up Call
Suit to Obtain Arctic Offshore Drilling Safety Data
Key Oil Spill Prevention and Response Documents Still Not Released to Public
Heated Rhetoric on Nevada Monument Invites Confrontation
Federal Employees in the West Put in Crosshairs by Superheated Political Rhetoric
BLM Reports Record Low Number of Threats in 2014
Despite Armed Standoff, Agency Claims Least Assaults and Threats Since 1996
War Games Open Fire in Gulf of Alaska
Eco-Effects of Sonar Arrays and Gunnery Unclear Even in Scaled Back Exercises
Battle Mountain Grazing Settlement Sows Seeds of Discord
Rancher Rewarded for Defiant Trespass as BLM Avoids Enforcement at All Costs
Plant Harvest Plan Threatens National Park Resources
Tribal Gathering Proposal Is Radical Departure from Conservation Principles
Settlement Limits Off-Road Vehicle Routes for Inyo County’s Adventure Trails
The Center for Biological Diversity, PEER and Inyo County today settled a lawsuit on the so-called “Adventure Trails” pilot project, limiting it to seven dual-use roads totaling 44 miles
Park Service/Budweiser Co-Branding Campaign Raises Questions
Off-Limit Corporate Partnerships on Table as NPS Waives Alcohol Promotion Ban
Surrendered Bundy Documents Shed No Light on Events
BLM: No Criminal Referrals, Cattle Inventory, or Lessons Learned
