Despite this, the Biden Administration is pushing a plan to help the government increase its ownership to at least 30 percent of all land by 2030, shortly after what would be the President’s second term.
The "30x30" plan was first proposed by the National Academy of Sciences as “nature’s best hope.” They claim the land grab is needed to preserve biodiversity, combat climate change, and provide recreational opportunities for future generations. The plan became official doctrine under an Executive Order in 2021.
The policy would curtail production of oil, gas, minerals, and timber, and further restrict livestock grazing. Supporters of the policy contend that America’s lands, habitat, and wildlife are declining at a rate of one football field every 30 seconds. This might be alarming if true, even given the fact that it would take many decades to make a dent in the total of 1.9 billion acres in the United States—or more than 2.4 billion acres counting Alaska.
Rob Gordon of the Heritage Foundation, who is a seasoned conservation and natural resource expert, disputes the claim in a 2020 report entitled, “Lands and Habitat in the United States: A Reality Check.” Using land use trends and wildlife populations as an indicator of habitat availability, the report finds the 30×30 advocates and the Biden Administration’s claims are unfounded.
According to the report, 92% of America’s land has remained unchanged for over a decade, and only 5.3% is considered developed.
The fact is, the government already owns more—way more—than 30 percent of all lands in 10 western states, including Nevada, where it owns an astounding 84 percent, Utah (64%), Idaho (61%), Alaska (60%), Oregon (52%), Wyoming (48%), California (45%), Arizona (38%), Colorado (35%) and New Mexico (34%).By comparison the government owns relatively little land in most of the Eastern states, which are much smaller and more densely populated—less than one percent in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, for example.
The Administration is seeking to expand government ownership principally through purchase of conservation easements, which give land owners one-time tax write-offs in exchange for permanent government control—and actual ownership—of the easements.
Every owner who wants to preserve the value of his or her land makes conservation a priority. Congress should consider a new approach to balance national conservation interests with the interests of land owners to manage them for their highest and best uses. The best way is to limit the duration of federal easements on private properties to 30 years to allow every future generation to re-think and re-balance local interests.
States that want to preserve the rights of land owners should promote a “Sunset” clause to the 30x30 plan.
No more federal easements without sunset provisions that allow future generations to decide for themselves how their own lands should be managed.
