Public land management is fine as is
By Matthew Kirby
Friday, April 8, 2016
... The uniquely American idea of national public lands means we all have an equal right to, and a vested interest in, protecting our natural treasures. We should not allow public lands to be taken over by corporate interests under the cloak of “states’ rights.” To do so would cede our rights and the rights of future generations to explore and enjoy our national public lands.
State proposals to seize national public lands come with tremendous costs. There is the cost of fighting an already-lost legal battle, the cost to taxpayers of owning and maintaining the lands, and the cost to our quality of life as access and lands are lost to the public.
The U.S. courts have weighed in numerous times on this issue over the decades and have consistently found that states have “no constitutional power to force federal land transfers.” This was a deal that Western states signed on to when they joined the union, and it is binding to this day. The Federal Land Policy and Management Act even explicitly clarifies that “public lands be retained in federal ownership” ...
http://lasvegassun.com/news/2016/apr/08/public-land-management-is-fine-as-is/
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