The Outdoor Industry Association wants President Trump to know that protecting public lands is a good thing.
Our dear ol’ President Donald Trump isn’t exactly the greatest thing that’s ever happened for public lands. There are millions of acres of sanctioned public lands around the United States under federal protection from basically everything that could ruin them. They’re beautiful places, and that protection ensures they’ll stay beautiful. While we continue to spread our dirty little fingers outward from our filthy, grasping hand, it’s nice to have a few places that are untouched. Trump, though, doesn’t see it that way. From a purely financial point of view, it almost makes sense–almost. There are, after all, some pretty giant fossil fuel reserves underneath a few of them, and we’re a nation of very thirsty fossil fuel guzzlers. That’s why he signed an executive order to review the status of 24 National Monuments a few months ago, which you probably heard about.
Take Bears Ears, for example. Back in the days when we weren’t talking about possible nuclear war, Barack Obama declared the Utah site a national monument. In an effort to undo anything Obama touched, President Trump told Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to focus on the Bears Ears Monument, since it’s believed to sit on top of a few million barrels of Texas tea. Now, the Outdoor Industry Association, a “membership-driven trade organization for the outdoor industry” with members like ARC’TERYX, Black Diamond, Body Glove, Carhartt, Iron & Resin, OluKai, Quiksilver, Sanuk, and the North Face, just to name a few, has penned a letter to the orange man in the highchair. Here it is in its entirety. Click here to see who signed it. There’s a lot of names on the list.
Dear President Trump,
Our nation’s land and water are part of our shared heritage and are hallmarks of who we are as Americans. As you contemplate your administration’s policies related to these places, the hundreds of executives and business leaders below call upon you to protect and defend the vast landscapes that comprise our public lands network. America’s outdoors bring us together, strengthen bonds with family and friends, and are the foundation of a massive economic engine across the nation. Shielding our national monuments and other public lands and waters from diminished protection will result in stronger rural and urban communities, thriving local economies, and a healthier nation.
For more than a century, Republican and Democratic presidents alike have used the 1906 Antiquities Act to set aside iconic landscapes, waterways, wildlife sanctuaries, and places of monumental beauty to ensure they remain uncorrupted and accessible for the enjoyment of hunters and hikers, bikers and boaters, anglers, campers and ranchers, for wildlife, and for all Americans. Undoing protections for these places is not only contrary to the conservation ethic established by President Theodore Roosevelt and honored by his successors but will devastate local communities and their economies that rely on these lands.
Protected public lands and waters are the very infrastructure that support a booming American economy. More than 90 percent of Americans believe that public lands provide net benefits for the economy and are positive economic drivers, and they are right. The outdoor sector, for example, supports 7.6 million good-paying, American jobs, contributes $887 billion annually to the economy and generates $125 billion in state, local and federal taxes. Public lands are also an important economic asset that extends beyond tourism and recreation. Counties with more protected federal lands have stronger employment, personal income, and per capita income growth. Businesses rely on access to public lands for employee recruitment and retention, adding millions more in additional jobs and economic activity. These local economies represent the American dream and give the United States a unique competitive advantage.
For the millions of Americans and the millions more who visit our country from around the world every year, exploring our public lands and waters provide an opportunity for a uniquely American experience. It has been said that the establishment and protection of America’s land and water is among our nation’s best ideas. We agree. These places were entrusted to us and it is our shared responsibility to remain responsible stewards of them.
As leaders of more than 350 American companies, we ask you to embrace the conservation ethic of your predecessors and keep current protections in place for our public lands and waters, ensuring these places live on for the benefit of every American today and for generations to come.
Cc: Secretary Ryan Zinke, U.S. Department of the Interior
Secretary Wilbur Ross, U.S. Department of Commerce
Director Gary Cohn, National Economic Council
