Public Land Management
Public Land Covers Over 50% Of America
The U.S. contains over 900 million acres of public land. These areas contain valuable natural resources, crucial ecosystems, and unique recreation activities. Despite numerous benefits, natural areas across the country have few safeguards to prevent destruction and misuse.
Immense Public Benefit
Drinking Water
Over 24% of the nation's drinking water comes from federal public land.
Carbon Sequestration
Forests absorb massive amounts of carbon dioxide, offsetting our emissions.
Habitat
Ecosystem stability hinges on many habitats protected on state and federal lands.
Recreation
Public Lands provide numerous opportunities for outdoor exploration and recreation.
Public Land Managers Stretched Thin
The U.S. Forest Service relies on less than 600 police officers to patrol 193 millions acres of forest.
Across the U.S., police officers work incredibly hard to monitor and protect massive pieces of public land. Their patrol areas often surpass 400,000 acres, and they cannot be everywhere at once. As a result, natural resource destruction often goes undetected. Timber is stolen and sensitive ecosystems are destroyed by off-road vehicle use.
Around 10% of all trees taken from the National Forest System are illegally harvested.
Timber Theft Task Force, U.S. Forest Service
Worldwide Forestry Crime
89 Square Miles
Of Forest Illegally Clear-Cut, Everyday
$51-152 Billion
Of Timber Stolen Annually
(INTERPOL)
Compared to the U.S., most of the world relies on far less specialized and even smaller environmental protection forces. Global forestry crime is widespread. Massive areas are illegally clear-cut each day. Nations are rapidly losing potential revenue streams while ecosystems are destroyed, amounting to a leading cause of climate change. According to the United Nations, deforestation is the largest source of carbon emissions.
A New Era of Public Land Protection
For land managers who struggle to effectively police and monitor vast areas, Outland Analytics provides instant alerts of timber theft and off-road vehicle use.
