Last week, the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) held a stakeholder session focused on regenerative grazing on public lands and conservation leasing as part of NACD’s summer meeting held in Bismarck, North Dakota, and invited the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to participate. This was a key opportunity for conservation districts and other local leaders and voices to engage in open dialogue with the BLM about conservation efforts on private and public lands across the country.
In April, the BLM released a proposed rule to bolster conservation on public lands within the agency’s multiple use framework. BLM received hundreds of thousands of public comments, including from NACD. At NACD’s stakeholder session, BLM Senior Policy Advisor, Errol Rice, outlined the bureau’s motivation behind the rule, provided clarifications, and answered questions about conservation in the multiple use framework and opportunities for locally-led conservation to help support the health, diversity, and productivity of public lands.
Rice emphasized the BLM’s commitment to continuing to work with local communities and stakeholders to identify concerns, and addressed questions related to conservation leasing, implementation, and interactions with additional land uses, stating, “This is an opportunity to develop a rule that addresses the growing issues on the landscape consistent with the multiple use framework under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act.”
Libby Wawro, NACD’s Natural Resource Policy Specialist, facilitated the discussion. “NACD thanks the BLM and stakeholders for joining us in Bismarck for a very productive discussion that demonstrated the BLM’s willingness to hear concerns and continue engaging in the ongoing conversation around the development of conservation efforts on public lands,” said Wawro. “We look forward to continued collaboration to ensure that any forthcoming policy changes are made in coordination with local communities and conservation districts to effectively implement conservation and support sustainable production and use on our public lands,” Wawro added.
Conservation districts and other workshop participants gained valuable insights into the BLM’s proposed rule and how it will interact with important uses, such as grazing. NACD appreciates the BLM’s commitment to collaborating with all stakeholders and looks forward to continuing to work together.
