‘Americans love our forests’: Comment period receives 330K responses for conservation

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) asked for public comment and received it.

In more than 330,000 comments, the public called for durable protections for mature and old-growth trees on BLM land. The comments were received during a public comment period on a proposed Conservation and Landscape Health rule. Members of the public and supporters of environmental advocacy groups, including Environment America, are calling on the BLM to protect forests managed by the agency.

“From the redwoods and Douglass firs of the West Coast to the birches and maples of New England, Americans love our forests. They’re some of the most special things about our country,” Public Lands Campaign Director for Environment America Ellen Montgomery said. “It’s appropriate that so many weighed in for protecting our forests so close to July 4th. On summer and holiday weekends, people spend more time hiking and camping in our forests and realize again how important they are.”

Dozens of organizations submitted comments, and social media viewers who learned about the issue through a grassroots effort on TikTok and Instagram submitted more than 160,000 comments.

President Joe Biden issued an executive order on Earth Day 2022 calling on the U.S. Forest Service and BLM to inventory and conserve mature and old growth forests on federal land. The request for public feedback is a step forward in implementing the president’s directives for forest conservation.

“Unfortunately, many forests managed by the BLM are threatened by logging,” Montgomery said. “We hope that the BLM will follow President Biden’s direction and listen to the 330,000 plus people who weighed in. The agency should move quickly to protect our biggest oldest trees.”