The Trump administration has launched a push to transfer federal lands to private developers, raising alarms that it could lead to restricted public access and windfalls for the wealthy.
Lois Parshley reports for Grist.
In short:
- U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who holds financial interests in a luxury Montana resort, is spearheading a plan to offload public lands near towns to private developers, potentially enriching elites while reducing public access.
- A land swap involving the Yellowstone Club gave the private resort thousands of acres of easily accessed land in exchange for remote, less-valuable tracts, a deal critics say reduced access for outdoor recreation and violated public trust.
- Though pitched as a housing fix, experts argue the plan won’t address affordability or location mismatches, and many of the targeted lands lack the infrastructure needed for housing development.
Key quote:
“Once the title is transferred, you never get it back.”
— Nick Gevock, campaign organizer for the Sierra Club
Why this matters:
Turning public lands over to developers rewrites access for future generations. Most federal lands are in the West and Alaska, regions already grappling with fire risk, water shortages, and growing tensions between industry and conservation. Stripping public oversight can create private playgrounds for the wealthy and a boon for extractive industries while undermining biodiversity and worsening environmental degradation. The political entanglements — including deep ties between top officials and development interests — compound the risk of decisions being made for profit, not the public good. Once public land is gone, there’s little chance of getting it back.
Related: Republican budget talks spark backlash over proposed sale of public lands
