As a westerner who loves hiking and the outdoors, I take comfort in the fact that approximately one-fifth of the U.S. landmass is dedicated as public lands. Utah’s public lands span approximately 63% of the state. I visualize our vast, pristine wilderness areas as refuges for plant and wildlife habitats to thrive while under the protection of our government’s federal and state agencies.
Data recently released by The Wilderness Society confirm that drilling and mining on American public lands sizably contribute to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. If you collected all public lands in the U.