U.S. wants to lease public lands for conservation, Biden government says

The Eel River twists next to the Lone Pine Ranch in Mendocino County, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 8, 2021. The Wildlands Conservancy purchased the ranch with the intention of turning it into a preserve open to the public. (Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

The Biden administration's Interior Department on Thursday proposed a new program that would allow it to offer leases of public land for conservation purposes, in much the same way as it currently offers acreage for drilling, mining, and grazing.

The plan would aim to protect landscapes from the impacts of climate change and enable industries to offset their environmental footprints elsewhere, it said. The move is consistent with the administration's stated goal to put climate change at the centre of agency decisions.

President Joe Biden has pledged to set the U.S. on a path to decarbonizing the economy by 2050 in part by preserving lands whose trees and other vegetation can absorb carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas that drives global warming.

The Department of Interior's Bureau of Land Management manages 10% of U.S. lands, or 245 million acres, primarily in western states. Uses range from grazing and recreation, to mining and energy development. The Biden administration believes conservation is among the uses of federal acreage permitted under the 1976 Federal Land Policy and Management Act.

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On a call with reporters, Interior officials said the idea to establish "conservation leases" responds to requests by states and companies seeking ways to mitigate the environmental impact of development projects on public lands.

For instance, a solar energy project on public lands could compensate for the loss of wildlife habitat by restoring habitat in another area. Leases could also be used to restore migration corridors for big game or to generate tradable offsets for carbon markets by preserving forests.

Asked how the rules would impact Interior's oil and gas leasing program, an agency official said the proposal would ensure that current activities on public lands could continue for decades to come.

Interior's leasing programs for oil, gas and mining add billions of dollars in revenue to federal coffers every year. The agency said conservation leases would also generate revenue.

BLM will accept public comments on the proposal for 75 days.

(Reporting by Nichola Groom; editing by David Gregorio)