At a moment of deep political division, few issues draw as much bipartisan support from the American public as the sanctity of public lands. Yet conservative lawmakers have quietly laid the foundation to give away Americans’ birthright: 640m acres of national land.

From Yosemite to the Grand Canyon to the Katahdin woods of Maine, no other country on earth offers the breadth and accessibility of American’s public lands. This shared resource is both an economic powerhouse and a common refuge where Americans come to hike, camp, ski, rock climb, fish and hunt.

This year we have witnessed an unprecedented attack on this national legacy. Between an effort in Congress to sell off millions of acres of public property and the Trump administration’s dubious review of national monuments, this has proven to be the worst government for public lands in American history.



The Republican platform now contains a commitment to give away an unspecified portion of 640m acres of American land to the states. The House of Representatives changed congressional rules this year to make it easy to dispose of public land without having to account for the loss in federal revenue. The small businesses, outdoor enthusiasts and sportsmen and women who have stridently opposed this initiative know that it will result in the loss of public access. Historically, 70% of land given to states from the federal government has been sold to private interests. Once transferred, most public land is gone forever.

Today, the Guardian US launches This Land is Your Land, a new series to hold politicians and corporate interests accountable for their environmental policies. We’re asking our readers to join us in this project, by helping us raise $50,000 to support our coverage throughout the year. The series begins today with a story about the threat to the Grand Canyon, as Arizona officials ask the Trump administration to end a ban on uranium mining near the canyon that was put in place by the Obama administration.



The inspiration for This Land is Your Land came directly from you, our readers. When the Guardian US covered Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz of Utah attempting to sell off 3.3m acres of national land earlier this year, the piece attracted close to a million readers, and generated 61,000 comments on Facebook.

The public backlash had an immediate impact: Chaffetz was forced to pull support for his own legislation. While the urgency of climate change is taking up many of the resources for environmental coverage in newsrooms, including our own, we want to also keep the spotlight on the unique threat facing America’s greatest natural resource.

There is currently an effort to move quickly and quietly to transfer public lands, diminishing public input and stifling opposition. Yet public opinion is firmly on the side of keeping public lands in public hands. Ninety-five percent of Americans say that national parks are worth protecting, and 80% would pay higher taxes to do so. The chaos in Washington makes it easier for private developers and the oil, gas and mining industries to push their agenda through without attracting attention.

A hundred years ago, the great conservationist Theodore Roosevelt warned of the dangers of becoming complacent about the future of wild places. The Republican president who helped conserve 230m acres for public use charged all Americans to protect that common ground. “We have fallen heirs to the most glorious heritage a people ever received,” he wrote. “Each one must do his part if we wish to show that the nation is worthy of its good fortune.”