The federal government owns an estimated 640 million acres of land, including about 3.6 million acres in Michigan, and a coalition of more than three dozen sportsman, wildlife, and environmental groups is asking presidential candidates to commit to keeping these lands public. Collin O’Mara, with the National Wildlife Federation says people need to keep fighting to maintain access to public lands.
“Those were extremists who were trying to accomplish with the point of a gun what some in Congress are trying to do with the point of a pen – and that is, wrest control of public lands from all Americans into the hands of a privileged few,” O’M<ara said.
The coalition of groups sent out their letters to the presidential candidates on Thursday. O’Mara says public lands also support the country’s outdoor recreation industry, which generates more than $646 billion a year.
