Schickedanz: What is the 30 x 30 Land Plan

 What is the 30 x 30 Land Plan 

Jerry G. Schickedanlz

 

The concept to protect 30 percent of the world’s land and water by 2030 is a product of the Paris Climate agreement of 2015 and “The Global Deal for Nature: Guiding principles, milestones andtargets,” which advocates the best way to fight climate change is to protect natural areas.   It has an ultimate goal to protect 50 percent by 2050 to reduce the impact of climate change on bio-diversity, loss of natural landscapes and reduce greenhouse gases.  In the United States, the recommendations of “conserving 30 percent of the nation’s lands by 2030” has been made by many environmental groups such as the Defenders of Wildlife, Center for American Progress, The Wilderness Society and many others.  The original goal and intent is to protect “natural areas” of land and ocean. 

In 2019, former Senator Tom Udall introduced to Congress, S. Res. 372.  Current Secretary of Interior and former Congresswoman, Deb Haaland introduced H. Res.835 in 2020, with both resolutions suggesting the United States establish a national goal of conserving at least 30 percent of the land and ocean by 2030.  On January 27, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order to implement a 30 x 30 plan conserving land and ocean in the United States. 

Executive Order 14008 “Tackling theClimate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” section 216 “Conserving Our Nations Landsand Waters” directed Secretary’s of Interior, Agriculture, Commerce and the Chair of Council on Environmental Quality to submit a report recommending steps the United States should take to achieve the 30 x 30 goal.  The report was delivered on May 6, 2021, and rebranded as “Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful.” 

The “America the Beautiful” report did little to clarify the difference between protecting or conserving land and water.  Conservation Biology principles advocate 50 percent or more of the ecoregions be protected to ensure conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services. What is allowed under a protection designation and or a conservation designation? This is an important distinction and the definition of conserving and protecting will be a major starting point.  

What is the science behind the recommendation?  Many of the advocates cite just “scientists” and little data to show that the 30 x 30 recommendation is required or needed.  The 30 x 30 logo has been adopted by the environmental community. However, not all groups are on board.  The Nature Conservancy in their 30 x 30: Eight Steps to Protect the Best on Earth, does not agree. They state, “There is no science that defines a universal threshold for the proportion of the planet that needs to be protected, no magical threshold, in other words, at which the Earth enters a safe zone.”

When land is protected with no use or management, the concept of “The Balance of Nature” is envisioned by the general public and is widely believed.  It appears in health food brand names and news sources everywhere. It has been promoted in movies such as the “Lion King” when Mufasa explains to his son Simba: “Everything you see exists together, in a delicate balance.”  However, that is an enduring myth, as nature is not in balance nor has it been.  Man become part of the equation and Darwin’s theory of “Survival of the Fittest” is at play all the time. The earth has been warming and cooling, with wetter and drier cycles since the beginning of time and changes have been occurring concurrently to the fauna and flora worldwide. 

What will be the physical and fiscal impacts of this major land reclassification? Survival International, an advocate for Indigenous people has speculated based on past history of land protection, that “300 million Indigenous people will be displaced to meet the world 30 x 30 goal.” Some disagree with the 300 million figure but also acknowledge that previous land protection programs have dislodged Indigenous people. History shows that American Indigenous people were displaced during the settlement of America.  Big government has a propensity to take what it wants, when it wants. 

How much land are we talking about?  There are approximately 2.3 billion acres in the United States, including Alaska. It will require that the United States set aside 681 million acres to meet the 30 x 30 goal.  That is equivalent to protecting the states of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Utah, Texas, Washington, Wyoming, New Hampshire, and New Jersey, or an area four times the size of Texas. 

What land classification or management will meet the requirement of 30 percent conservation?  What federal, state and private lands will be included or targeted?  Nationally the Federal Government does not have enough land to satisfy the goal.  Private land will be needed for inclusion in the set aside, but what “conservation” practice and restrictions are required to qualify under the 30 percent?  Do federally managed multiple-use lands qualify under the term “conservation”? There are 391 million acres of land devoted to crops and under private ownership and 650 million acres in grassland, pasture and range. Will eminent domain come into play or will the federal agencies employ regulations to force relinquishment of property rights? 

The report “Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful” to President Biden’s National Climate Task Force recommends that the effort to conserve 30 percent of the land and water honor Tribal Sovereignty, private property rights, use science as a guide and to be collaborative, etc.  This sends a mixed message as The Secretary of Interior on February 11, 2021, rescinded the previous administration’s order to require “A written expression of support by both the affected Governor and local county or county government-equivalent is required for the acquisition of land, water, or an interest in land or water under the Federal Land and Water Conservation Fund.”  This seems to open the door for a heavier handed government role in acquiring land and water under the 30 x 30 plan.  The Antiquities Act of 1906 authorized the President with a stroke of the pen to lock away federal land into a National Monument and has been recently touted by environmental groups as a means to protect land under the 30 x 30 plan. 

These and many more questions need to be addressed and honestly debated prior to the implementation of any restrictive land use designations. . 

It is imperative that you get involved in asking and help in answering the questions at the local level. Let your voice be heard!

Jerry Schickedanz is the Dean Emeritus of the college of ACES and holds the Evelyn Linebery Chair at the Linebery Policy Center for Natural Resource Management at NMSU.