Author Archive

John Freemuth

Professor of Public Policy, Boise State University

Management

Viewpoint: Moving Bureau of Land Management Headquarters to Colorado Won’t Be Good for Public Lands

Do public lands in the West belong to Westerners, or all Americans? Moving a federal agency's headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Colorado is the latest skirmish in a longtime struggle.

Management

Interior Secretary Zinke Invokes Teddy Roosevelt as a Model, but His Public Land Policies Don’t

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke calls himself "a Teddy Roosevelt guy," but supports many actions that critics call anti-conservation, such as shrinking national monuments and fast-tracking energy projects.

Management

Can Ryan Zinke Balance Conservation and Development as Interior Secretary?

If he is confirmed, he will face difficult choices about balancing extractive activities like energy production with conservation on public lands.

Management

Corporate Sponsors at Yosemite? The Case Against Privatizing National Parks

As the National Park Service turns 100 years old, two conservation scholars and former park rangers respond to critics who support privatizing national parks or putting them under state control.

Management

How the Antiquities Act Has Expanded the National Park System and Fueled Struggles Over Land Protection

he 1906 Antiquities Act gives presidents unilateral power to protect land as national monuments. The law has saved important places, but has also fueled intense conflicts over land control