Previewing the Opportunities Ahead for Progress on Climate, Conservation and Environmental Justice

National policy shifts for public lands are in store from the incoming administration and new Congress

The forces behind the violent riots and insurrection of January 6th are unlikely to completely dissipate after the Inauguration, but President-elect Joe Biden has made clear in public statements that the business of government must and will continue. In his campaign for the White House, he made some strong pledges to safeguard lands, waters and the climate during the political campaign. His leadership is expected to lead to some significant policy shifts, but also a culture change in Washington and around the nation when it comes to America’s environmental health. Even as President Trump fomented discord and launched false allegations of election fraud, progress was being made on the Hill with passage of an omnibus/stimulus bill that included several renewable energy provisions and the first climate action by Congress since 2009. The vice grip fossil fuel interests have had over the Interior Department and other federal agencies over the last four years also appears to be coming to an end.

Two specific campaign promises would address the climate and wildlife extinction crises we face with bold action. The Biden/Harris campaign readily embraced a national goal of conserving 30 percent of land and water by 2030, while halting new oil and gas leasing on public lands.

In addition, the Biden/Harris campaign was very clear it intended to act swiftly to repair the damage of the Trump era, including restoring protections to national monuments, reversing regulatory rollbacks benefiting polluters over people, and restoring science and greater equity to decision making about our environment.

30 x 30: Conservation that will rejuvenate nature and people.

To confront the rapid loss of America’s natural places and wildlife, the U.S. must accelerate land and ocean protection and restoration efforts at all levels of government. According to ecologist Edward O. Wilson and other scientists, roughly half of all lands and waters should be conserved in a natural condition if we want to prevent most wildlife species from going extinct, and if we want our children and grandchildren to have continued access to clean water, clean air, and secure food supplies.

As a step toward this longer-term goal, the Biden/Harris team committed to establishing a national goal of protecting and restoring 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 (a policy often described as ‘30x30’). Currently, only 12% of U.S. lands and 26% of the U.S. ocean (almost exclusively in the western Pacific and northwestern Hawaii) are protected.

Candidate Joe Biden committed to taking action on Day One by issuing an executive order to kick off this important work.

The goal is not at all fanciful, and despite all of the setbacks of the last four years, there was forward progress in passage of a massive 2019 public lands bill that hints at what is possible in the years ahead.  

Further progress would have happened had the defense appropriations bill retained provisions that would have protected 1.3 million acres of additional wilderness and other natural landscapes. These will likely be revisited in the near term ahead and could lead to improved protection for iconic places like the Grand Canyon, Boundary Waters, the Arctic Refuge, Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, the Tongass National Forest and so many more.  

The U.S. can lead on addressing climate change by making public lands a net-zero source of emissions.  

Some 25 percent of America’s greenhouse gas emissions emanate from public lands. If American public lands were their own country, they would rank as the fifth largest greenhouse gas emitter in the world. 

The Biden/Harris Administration can make strides this year to make our public lands and waters a net-zero source of emissions by 2030, with the long-term goal of being pollution-free by 2050. We can do this by ensuring a just and equitable transition away from fossil fuel extraction on public lands, restoring damage to lands and watersheds and responsibly deploying renewable energy that creates sustainable transition jobs for local communities. We must also protect our remaining forests like the Tongass that have the greatest potential to absorb gases that are warming our planet.  

To meet this pollution-free target, federal agencies, and the Interior department in particular, will need to take immediate and aggressive steps to rein in pollution from the federal fossil fuel leasing program, while also reforming federal energy programs to advance well-sited, wildlife-friendly clean energy projects on public lands. Additionally, federal agencies must increase natural absorption of pollution through reforestation and restoration projects that create jobs, protect the most important carbon-storing systems, such as old-growth forests, and manage all lands to improve their health and climate resilience. The Biden team could look to The Wilderness Society “Climate Plan for Public Lands,” which describes how the nation can take a comprehensive approach to reducing emissions while scaling up responsible renewable energy production, improving resiliency, and protecting key landscapes. 

Public lands decisions must be more inclusive and create more equitable access to nature’s benefits.

Candidate Biden issued a slate of environmental justice policy proposals during the campaign that recognized a number of historic inequities and injustices. 

Everyone should have safe, welcoming access to our nation’s public lands, be able to enjoy the benefits of a healthy environment and be included in decisions about the future of these shared resources. For all of the setbacks of the last four years, with the gutting of NEPA perhaps being the most egregious in the realm environmental equity and justice, we did see some progress.  A record level of funding, $125 million, was dedicated to a little known program dedicated to improving access to parks and nature, setting the stage for much deeper progress to comprehensively tackle barriers that prevent many communities of color from enjoying the outdoors or being involved in how resources are spent. 

Biden’s appointments have also been an early signal of progress, and perhaps no agency has a more dismal track record on racial equity and justice than the Interior Department, which for generations disenfranchised and discriminated against Indigenous people and tribal nations.  His choice of Rep. Deb Haaland, a member of the Laguna Pueblo, to lead his Interior Department is nothing short of historic and her confirmation would be a vital first step toward beginning to heal these deep wounds. Her leadership would be an opportunity to conserve nature for the benefit of all members of society, especially those that have been adversely affected by inequitable and unjust policies. She and the administration can set policies for communities to benefit from climate action, provide for just transition for those that lean on oil, gas and other extractive industries, and fairly ensure everyone has improved access to parks and other open spaces.

The solutions TWS will advance in the months and years ahead should be as bold and as multifaceted as our public lands themselves. There is no time to waste, and we look forward to engaging the new Congress and administration to realize the full promise and potential public lands can offer to all of us.  

****

For more information and to speak with policy experts at The Wilderness Society about these issues , contact: Tony Iallonardo at tony_iallonardo@tws.org.