OPPOSE BLM land Transfer in ND!

[brocksw]

***Folks outside of ND feel free to oppose as well!

OPPOSE The ND Trust Lands Completion Act
(H.R. 2045/S.1088)

Our objection to this bill summarized:

1. Once transferred to state trust department, tens of thousands of acres of land that have always been open for public hunting can be closed by lessee.

2. Once transferred, state trust department could sell lands

3. Management will no longer prioritize public access or wildlife

4. There is no way for the public to be involved in the decision making around land WE OWN!

TAKE ACTION at the link below!

Take Action

Backcountry Hunters & Anglers is the voice for our wild public lands, waters and wildlife.

www.backcountryhunters.org

Edit:
Had some technical issues with the link. Make sure it matches the image below.

 

[seeth07]

How many acres of blm are at stake in ND?

 

[seeth07]

Nevermind I found it. 59,720 acres or 0.135% of the state. Maybe having the state get control of this small amount of land does make sense because I'm guessing it is a burden for the local BLM offices to have to manage those parcels from likely a further distance away?

 

[8andcounting]

Yeh this is bad . Thanks for your work on opposition of this Brock

 

[Pucky Freak]

I’m not getting it. If ND already benefits from state trust land within reservations, why does it want to give it up for an equal amount of state land outside reservations? The state gains nothing, the public loses land access, and the reservations gain land use. Last I checked, Republicans in ND are not pro reservation.

 

[Candiru]

Is this for the benefit of oil companies? This will ensure that the Feds can't ban drilling on what is now BLM land and the tribe will have autonomy on their land.

 

[Treeshark]

It’s things like this that should make BHA reconsider their open hostility towards nonresident hunting.

Their silo approach seems short sided, just my opinion.

 

[brocksw]

I’m not getting it. If ND already benefits from state trust land within reservations, why does it want to give it up for an equal amount of state land outside reservations? The state gains nothing, the public loses land access, and the reservations gain land use. Last I checked, Republicans in ND are not pro reservation.

Tribe consolidates lands inside reservations boundaries. State gets to convert federal lands to state land and federal minerals to state minerals.

Links to maps state trust surface lands and state trust mineral lands. You can see both clearly delineated inside reservation boundaries.

Surface

North Dakota GIS Hub Data Portal

This is where you will find North Dakota geospatial data and information. The contents of this site are managed by the data stewards of North Dakota state agencies.

gishubdata-ndgov.hub.arcgis.com

Below is an example of state surface trust lands on the Standing Rock Reservation. These will get traded for surface lands in western ND, a couple hundred miles away.



Mineral

North Dakota GIS Hub Data Portal

This is where you will find North Dakota geospatial data and information. The contents of this site are managed by the data stewards of North Dakota state agencies.

gishubdata-ndgov.hub.arcgis.com

Below is an example of state minerals inside the Standing Rock Reservation on the South Dakota border. Outside of oil country. These minerals will go the tribe in exchange for BLM minerals in western North Dakota, in oil country.

 

[brocksw]

And I want to be crystal clear that we don’t necessarily oppose the transfer of minerals. It is the transfer of surface that concerns us. Because of the change in management direction and the possibility for them to be closed or sold.

But we do take issue with the fact that this is all being done with the federal delegation ignoring request for information and a conversation.

We think there is a way that this bill could still be amended that would benefit everybody, and not ignore the needs of hunters and wildlife.

 

[seeth07]

Because of the change in management direction and the possibility for them to be closed or sold.

Can you give me the statistics of how many state lands have been sold to private in the last 10 years? Last 25 years?

Also, What percentage of state lands are close to public use?

 

[brocksw]

Is this for the benefit of oil companies? This will ensure that the Feds can't ban drilling on what is now BLM land and the tribe will have autonomy on their land.

I think there is an obvious benefit for the tribe and an obvious benefit to the school trust when you’re talking about adding 160k acres of minerals in oil country to your portfolio.

But none of those benefits need to leave hunters out of the process without any assurances that land that is currently open to the public, remains open to the public, and wildlife habitat remains at the forefront of the conversation.

Something else that adds an interesting element to this.

The tribe bought land outside of the reservation boundary, and those are not being considered for trade. Why does the public have to give up BLM land when the tribe has 10,000 acres of private land outside the reservation that they could trade?

Reservation boundary is red line

 

[brocksw]

There’s been a few hundred people that have signed this, keep the pressure up!

 

[Pucky Freak]

Tribe consolidates lands inside reservations boundaries. State gets to convert federal lands to state land and federal minerals to state minerals.

Links to maps state trust surface lands and state trust mineral lands. You can see both clearly delineated inside reservation boundaries.

Surface

North Dakota GIS Hub Data Portal

This is where you will find North Dakota geospatial data and information. The contents of this site are managed by the data stewards of North Dakota state agencies.

gishubdata-ndgov.hub.arcgis.com

Below is an example of state surface trust lands on the Standing Rock Reservation. These will get traded for surface lands in western ND, a couple hundred miles away.

View attachment 334881

Mineral

North Dakota GIS Hub Data Portal

This is where you will find North Dakota geospatial data and information. The contents of this site are managed by the data stewards of North Dakota state agencies.

gishubdata-ndgov.hub.arcgis.com

Below is an example of state minerals inside the Standing Rock Reservation on the South Dakota border. Outside of oil country. These minerals will go the tribe in exchange for BLM minerals in western North Dakota, in oil country.

View attachment 334879

Would you attempt to explain it to me like I am 7 years old?

 

[elkduds]

Sent opposition to my lawmakers from CO, via BHA link. Thanks for posting @brocksw

 

[brocksw]

There should’ve been a nationwide email that went out yesterday. Please share!

 

[Schism]

Brock, I received the nationwide email from BHA. Thanks for keeping this in the light as much as possible. I'm not a fan of the proposed transfer and the fact that the deal seems to be happening behind the scenes without much/any public input makes this smell even worse.

After contacting Senator Hoeven I received a canned response from him. I don't think he has a full understanding of how this could impact sportsmen.

 

[BuzzH]

Nevermind I found it. 59,720 acres or 0.135% of the state. Maybe having the state get control of this small amount of land does make sense because I'm guessing it is a burden for the local BLM offices to have to manage those parcels from likely a further distance away?

I've done work on those BLM lands in both North and South Dakota both while working for the RWRP and FS, there is no more burden to the agencies than there is any other place that Federal Public Lands exist.

 

[COEngineer]

***Folks outside of ND feel free to oppose as well!

Us folks outside ND own the BLM land as much as those who live there. This is not a ND issue. It's a federal lands issue. I let my US Congressional reps know how I feel about it via the BHA link.

 

[Pucky Freak]

There should’ve been a nationwide email that went out yesterday. Please share!

Read it. Issue still makes zero sense to me. How is the transfer a net benefit to the State of ND?

 

[brocksw]

Read it. Issue still makes zero sense to me. How is the transfer a net benefit to the State of ND?

The state gives 37,000 acres of surface and 160k acres of minerals to the tribes. These state acres are predominantly in non-oil producing reservations (standing rock, spirit lake, sisseton, turtle mountains).

In return the BLM(instead of the tribe) gives the state federal surface acres and mineral acres in western ND, where the oil is.

The BLM serves as a sort of proxy, trading federal acres to the state on the tribes behalf. Because the tribe is getting something for nothing. They are literally giving up nothing in this deal. You and I, as federal public land owners are giving up federally managed acres of surface and mineral on their behalf.

The state gets to take surface acres and minerals that currently produce relatively little income(grazing only) and exchange them for oil producing acres in western ND. Where they will have grazing revenue and oil revenue.

Again, there are some components we dont take issue with. We have no issue with the tribes wanting to consolidate lands and minerals inside their reservation boundaries. We have no issue with the state wanting something in return for those acres. But why do you and I as public land owners and users have to give up something while the tribe gives up nothing?