The US Department of the Interior (DOI) is a division of the federal government responsible for protecting the natural resources of the U.S. The department also protects the country’s heritage, honors the culture of various tribal communities, and supplies domestically produced energy to the country. One of their eight bureaus is the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). This agency is responsible for ensuring our land is protected and managed wisely.
What Does the BLM Do?
When the Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1946 consolidated the General Land Office and the US Grazing Service, the Bureau of Land Management was born. The main functions of the BLM were defined in the 1976 Federal Land Policy and Management Act.
The BLM is responsible for managing the land resources of the US. They have the authority to carry out programs that aim to wisely set land use plans which balance the use while protecting the resources of 245 million acres of public land. BLM manages public lands in the U.S. including grasslands, forests, arctic tundra, high mountains, and desert landscapes that make up 13% of the US total land surface.
The Bureau manages several resources and their uses, like forage, forests and woodlands, recreational activities, wild horse and burro rangelands and grazing, wilderness areas, fish and wildlife habitat, as well as landscape conservation of historical, archeological, and paleontological sites. It also oversees mineral leasing and operations. These various activities generate a lot of revenue making BLM one of the greatest revenue-generating Federal agencies. Mineral leasing activities alone can generate $4.5 billion in one year with 700 million mineral estate acres.
The BLM is responsible for soil and watershed management of over 260 million acres in the US. This program has been created to conserve and enhance public land through practices such as revegetation and water development.
Fire protection and wildfire management of public lands is yet another of the many responsibilities of the Bureau of Land Management. Practically everything that concerns land use is managed and supervised by this powerhouse agency.
The BLM and Renewable Energy
In addition to managing the domestic oil, coal and gas operations, the BLM is making large-scale contributions in renewable energy. With the extensive amount of public lands available to the BLM, the production of solar, geothermal, wind and biomass energy is significant.
The BLM Protects Our Environment
Since the BLM is concerned with sustaining health and productivity of public lands, keeping hazardous materials out of these areas is imperative. Since nearly 40% of the hazardous waste sites have been created through illegal dumping, the Hazardous Materials Management (HAZMAT) is working directly with the Department to help the Bureau maintain good environmental conditions and safe health on their public lands.
References
(2010) About the BLM. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
(2010) About Interior. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
(2010) Federal Regulations: Bureau of Land Management. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
