Final BLM notice scraps milestone “Public Lands Rule”
Great Bend of the Gila, AZ
Dawn Kish
Rule solidified balanced management approach prescribed by Congress in 1976
WASHINGTON D.C. (May 11, 2026) — The Department of the Interior noticed rescission of the BLM Public Lands Rule (also known as the Conservation and Landscape Health Rule), stripping much-needed guidance for the nation’s largest land agency to follow the balanced approach set for it by Congress nearly 50 years ago. The move culminates a rollback process launched by the administration in the spring of 2025.
Under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, passed in 1976, the BLM is legally required to manage lands for “multiple use and sustained yield,” to the benefit of current and future generations. The BLM Public Lands Rule, finalized in 2024, laid down long overdue direction to follow that charter. Through the newly announced rescission, the administration is disregarding the agency’s statutory authority in a bid to make industrial applications like drilling and mining the default and dominant use of our nation’s public lands forever.
Alison Flint, acting vice president for federal policy at The Wilderness Society, made the following statement about the news:
“Public lands provide us the freedom to explore the great outdoors. Congress directed the BLM to manage public lands in a way that balances uses like outdoor recreation with needs as varied as grazing, energy development and conservation of wildlife habitat. The administration’s rescission of the BLM Public Lands Rule flouts both the agency’s legal mandate and the overwhelming wishes of the American people for public lands to be managed in a balanced and sustainable way that conserves special places for future generations.”
Contact: newsmedia@tws.org / mgreenberg@tws.org
