U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is a federal agency established in 1946 that oversees the management of public lands across the United States, covering approximately 245 million acres, which is about 10 percent of the nation’s total land area. Originally part of the General Land Office, the agency evolved from earlier land disposal policies, including the Homestead Act of 1862. The BLM was formed to address significant issues related to land misuse, particularly overgrazing, which prompted the creation of the Grazing Service in the 1930s.
The agency operates under principles of multiple-use and sustained yield, which allow for various land uses such as recreation, grazing, and resource extraction while promoting environmental sustainability. Key regulations, including the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, strengthened the BLM's authority to manage these resources thoughtfully. Today, the BLM's responsibilities have expanded to include oversight of onshore oil and gas production, as well as mineral rights management, particularly in western states and Alaska. This multifaceted role highlights the BLM's commitment to balancing public enjoyment of land with resource conservation and development.
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Subject Terms
U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
IDENTIFICATION: Federal agency responsible for managing the public lands of the United States
DATE: Established in 1946
The Bureau of Land Management is charged with managing public lands in ways that are consistent with both multiple-use concepts and sustained-yield principles.
The U.S. federal government’s original policy concerning public lands was to encourage their disposal. The most widely known method for this disposal was through homesteading as a result of the Homestead Act of 1862, which was overseen by the General Land Office, a forerunner of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) created in 1812. The land that remained after settlement and the designation of national parks, national forests, and wildlife refuges was available for public use. Abuses of these public lands became widespread, however, and by the 1930’s there was need for correction. Extensive overgrazing of livestock constituted one of the most serious misuses of public lands. As a result of these abuses, the Grazing Service was created as part of the U.S. Department of the Interior to manage some 32.4 million hectares (80 million acres) under the provisions of the Taylor Grazing Act in 1934.
In 1946 the Grazing Service became the BLM. Part of the BLM’s continuing responsibilities were based on the need to evaluate damage, classify public lands for grazing purposes, and assess fees for grazing. Concerns about environmental quality grew during the 1960’s and 1970’s, and these increased concerns extended to the public lands. As a result, the BLM was granted more authority under the provisions of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, which encouraged the BLM to manage public lands in ways that are consistent with both multiple-use concepts and sustained-yield principles.
The multiple-use approach to land-use planning has a lengthy history in resource management in the United States, particularly in forestry. Because of the potential for land to be used for a wide variety of purposes, such as timber production, grazing, and recreation, legislators recognized that careful planning is needed and that there are strong advantages to managing public lands in a way that ensures that resources are sustained and the is protected. These principles were articulated in the Multiple Use-Sustained Yield Act of 1960, and they have, in turn, become a part of BLM policy.
In the twenty-first century, most lands managed by the BLM are in Alaska and the other states west of the Mississippi River. However, the management of onshore oil drilling, gas production, and development on federal lands is also part of the BLM’s responsibilities. As a result, the bureau maintains an office to deal with oil and mineral policies on public land east of the Mississippi River. In the 2020s, the Bureau of Land Management was responsible for 245 million acres of public land, about 10 percent of the nation’s total land area. The bureau also managed about 700 million acres of mineral rights.
Bibliography
"About Us." Bureau of Land Management, www.blm.gov/about. Accessed 15 July 2024.
Allen, Leslie. Wildlands of the West: The Story of the Bureau of Land Management. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2002.
Skillen, James. The Nation’s Largest Landlord: The Bureau of Land Management in the American West. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2009.