Major Rollback Threatens Conservation in Public Land Management, Abandoning Progress for Parks

WASHINGTON—Today, the Trump administration announced its rescission of the Public Lands Rule, rolling back protections on shared public lands across the West and backing away from the Bureau of Land Management’s obligations to steward these lands under a multiple-use mandate that puts conservation on an equal footing with other uses of public lands.

This move upends a balanced land management approach away from accounting for wildlife conservation, cultural resource protection and recreational use in favor expanded oil and gas drilling, mining and industrial development on millions of acres of public lands as part of a broader push to sell off public lands to private interests.

The Public Lands Rule, adopted after years of work and overwhelming public support, was created to address a historic imbalance that favored mining and oil and gas development over other conservation on public lands, often leaving behind degraded landscapes and wildlife habitat. The rule also clarified conservation as a valid use on equal footing with other uses under BLM management and created innovative opportunities for private entities, Tribes, community and conservation groups, and others to lead restoration projects in an approach that fostered public-private partnerships to catalyze the long-term resilience of public lands.

Parks like the Grand Canyon, Arches, Joshua Tree and Dinosaur National Monument border public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management. What happens just outside of park boundaries directly impacts the health of our parks. Without this rule in place, surrounding landscapes that protect parks are left vulnerable to industrial exploitation, putting clean water, wildlife habitat connectivity, and community health at risk.

81% of the public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management are open to oil and gas leasing. Additionally, with the passage of H.R. 1 in 2025, Congress mandated quarterly oil and gas lease sales regardless of environmental impact, further elevating energy development over conservation, recreation, and cultural resource protection.

Polling conducted by NPCA and YouGov found bipartisan opposition to opening lands in or adjacent to national parks for mining and drilling, recognizing that such activities can cause irreversible damage and threaten the very experiences that millions of visitors come to national parks to enjoy.

Statement from Beau Kiklis, Associate Director of Energy and Landscape Conservation at the National Parks Conservation Association

“This administration chose to eliminate the Public Lands Rule, despite its overwhelming public support, at the very moment where extreme drought and a changing climate are pushing our public lands to the brink. This is a major loss for the long-term stewardship of millions of acres of public land that belong to all of us, many surrounding our prized national parks.

“The Bureau of Land Management has an enduring obligation to protect these landscapes for future generations. This rollback represents a lost opportunity to conserve and restore the landscapes surrounding parks like Carlsbad, Canyonlands, Dinosaur National Monument and beyond.

“This fits a pattern of brazen attempts to sell off and sell out our shared public lands at the expense of public access and conservation. From gutting agency staff to shutting the public out of the process to sidelining years of sound science, rushed industrial development and private interests are being given a free pass no matter the cost. This rollback is the latest attempt by the administration to chip away at America’s conservation legacy while ignoring the will of the people.”

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About the National Parks Conservation Association: Since 1919, the nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) has been the leading voice in safeguarding our national parks. NPCA and its more than 1.6 million members and supporters work together to protect and preserve our nation’s most iconic and inspirational places for future generations. For more information, visit www.npca.org