Government-issued maps offer a promise for safely exploring our public lands, but they no longer reflect the reality of what’s actually on the ground.
Public lands
Posted inArticles
Alaska’s public lands are a political battleground
The first year of the second Trump administration saw a bewildering array of federal actions in the 49th state. Here’s your guide to where things now stand.
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Congress passes environmental funding without Trump’s deep cuts
But the bipartisan effort still trimmed climate research and fails to solve agencies’ chronic underfunding.
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6 takeaways from our public-lands grazing investigation
Subsidies prop up ranching, grazing degrades the land and politics underpin the system.
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Top Interior Department official has ties to Thacker Pass lithium mine
Karen Budd-Falen’s family ranching operation agreed to sell water rights to the company developing the controversial Nevada lithium project.
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Water across the West at risk as Trump targets national monuments
A new study found that about 83% of water passing through public lands uses monument designation for its only protection.
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National parks aren’t just for tourists. They’re an essential home for wildlife.
Pick up this new book on Yosemite for the photos but stay for the captivating animal stories.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How ranchers accused of breaking the rules dodge oversight
Elected officials interfere with agency efforts to protect the land.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
Congress made it easier to ignore grazing’s harm to public lands
Federal law requires agencies to review the environmental impacts of grazing, but government employees allege the system is riddled with loopholes.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
The wealthy profit from public lands, and taxpayers pick up the tab
Roughly two-thirds of grazing on Bureau of Land Management land is controlled by just 10% of permit holders.
Posted inDecember 2025: Wild Harvest
How we reported Free Range, our grazing investigation
Data and analyses used in the stories.
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Fix Our Forests Act divides environmental community
But it’s a rare instance of bipartisan lawmaking and the biggest wildfire legislation in recent history.
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The nation’s energy dominance falters
Trump is killing clean energy, and it’s not even helping fossil fuels.
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Sen. Mike Lee’s new bill permits ‘tactical infrastructure’ in wilderness areas
The Border Lands Conservation Act gives the Department of Homeland Security the power to waive myriad federal laws, including the Wilderness Act, under the pretense of border security.
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More than 2,000 jobs could be cut at Interior during shutdown
Research, wildlife and conservation are in the crosshairs.
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What we stand to lose if national monuments fall
Can one of the nation’s best conservation tools survive?
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Shutdown causes ‘confusion’ across the Forest Service
Prescribed burns are on hold during shutdown while logging continues.
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Visiting public lands during the shutdown? Be polite and prepared
Public land advocates say the shutdown threatens resources but offer advice on how to help.
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What the government shutdown means for public lands
Many parks will stay open, and oil and gas permitting will continue — even as tens of thousands of staff are furloughed at NPS, BLM and USFS.
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Will the public-lands coalition hold?
Americans came together to keep public lands in public hands this summer. Will they do it again?