American Rivers Supports Creation of Bipartisan Public Lands Caucus, Admidst Fears of Selloff

May 7, 2025

Contact: Hawk Hammer, National Communications and Media Director, Hhammer@americanrivers.org 

WASHINGTON D.C. — American Rivers applauds the creation of the Congressional Public Lands Caucus. Led by Rep. Vasquez (D- NM) and Rep. Zinke (R-MT), the caucus is focused on protecting and expanding access to America’s public lands. It comes at a time when public lands find themselves increasingly under threat from both White House and Congressional proposals to sell them off.   

“There is nothing more quintessentially American than our public lands and waters. Protecting the places that make our nation beautiful and provide so many essential services to us is something that must continue to unite us,” said Tom Kiernan, president and CEO of American Rivers. “Our national parks, wildlife refuges, national forests, and rangelands  are the source of clean, safe drinking water for millions of Americans, support local economies, and provide habitat for fish and wildlife. We look forward to what we hope is the rapid growth and success of this new caucus.”  

Public lands fast facts:  

  • Are the largest single source of municipal water supply in the nation.  
  • Roughly 1 in 10 Americans in the West depend on the lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management to supply their drinking water. 
  • Recreation on BLM lands contributed $11.1 billion to the economy and 73,000 jobs in 2022 while spending by visitors to national forests and grasslands contributes about $13.7 billion to the US economy and sustains about 161,000 full-and part-time jobs. 
  • Public lands comprise 640 million acres, or about 28 percent of the nation’s landmass. 
  • A  2022 study by the U.S. Forest Service revealed national forests in the West comprised 19.2 percent of the total land area yet contributed 46.3 percent of the surface water supply. In the East, national forests comprised 2.8 percent of total land and 3.8 percent of the water supply. 

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American Rivers is a national conservation organization working to make every river clean and healthy for people and wildlife. We combine evidence-based solutions with enduring partnerships to safeguard the 3.5 million miles of rivers and streams that are essential to our nation’s clean drinking water, extraordinary wildlife, and strength of our communities. For more than 50 years, our staff, supporters, and partners have been driven by a common belief: Life Depends on Rivers. AmericanRivers.org