Via yet another decree (Executive Order 14008), President Biden has instructed government agencies to "permanently protect" at least 30% of all US lands and waters by 2030. This "30 X 30 Plan" appears to presume that any areas not designated as park, refuge or wilderness are not "protected," even though the vast majority of federal lands are already effectively off limits to mining, drilling, timber harvesting and even grazing, by virtue of policies heavily tilted toward preservation and against any development.
Federal land management agencies include the Defense Department: 9 million acres; National Park Service: 80 million; Fish and Wildlife Service: 89 million; Forest Service: 193 million; and Bureau of Land Management: 244 million acres. That's 615 million acres, six times California, 28% of the USA.
