"Taking care of our public lands is and must continue to be a proud American tradition." - President Barak Obama

“With one-third of America's land in public hands, NPLD provides an opportunity for volunteers of all ages to help sustain these lands,” said Robb Hampton, director of the public lands program of the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF), which coordinates NPLD. “Volunteers can also spend time after their tasks to enjoy the lands, whether at a local green space or national park. Many sites offer nature hikes, bike rides, picnics or other outdoor activities.” 

National Public Lands Day (NPLD) is the largest volunteer event that benefits America's public lands. NPLD is held on a Saturday in late September when thousands of Americans volunteer to improve and enhance our nation's public lands.

In 2012, National Public Lands Day engaged the services of an estimated 170,000 volunteers working on more than 2,100 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam. BLM projects produced millions of dollars in enhancements to the BLM’s public lands and facilities.

Check out photos of our 2012 events on our Facebook page.

Bigfoot Burn Habitat Restoration Project Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area Volunteers planted native shrubs and forbs as part of restoration efforts in the Big Foot Burn Area. This fire burned over 1,600 acres in this area in August 2011. These shrubs provide important habitat for raptor prey species such as jackrabbits that are critical for the golden eagle.

Pole Creek Wilderness Project Volunteers built a vehicle pull-out for parking and constructed about 300 feet of fencing just outside the Wilderness.

Blue Creek Bay Project Coeur d' Alene area Volunteers planted shrubs and wildflowers, installed trail signage and a trailhead kiosk and completed general clean-up along the Blue Creek Trailhead. Gamlin Lake Project Sandpoint, Idaho area Volunteers moved a picnic table to a new location for better wildlife viewing and worked on trail improvements in the area.

Wild Horse Corral and River Clean-up  Challis, Idaho area Volunteers assisted the BLM with basic repair and improvements of the Challis Wild Horse Corrals to maintain the health and safety of the wild horses.  The facility can maintain up to 250 wild horses. Maintanance included painting, removing rocks, spreading gravel and basic clean-up of the area. Volunteers also helped clean-up trash along the Upper Salmon River.

River Clean-up and Trail Maintenance Projects Idaho Falls, Idaho area Volunteers worked on a variety of projects including trail maintenance at the Stinking Springs and Cress Creek Nature Trail areas and river clean-up near the Wolf Flats Recreation Site.

St. Anthony Sand Dunes Clean-Up Idaho Falls, Idaho area This dune complex receives over 250,000 visitors annually and in many areas, litter and debris are left behind by the users and buried by blowing sand. Volunteers cleaned up St. Anthony Sand Dunes for this National Public Lands Day event.

Blackfoot Reservoir Campground Planting BLM planted trees at the Blackfoot Reservoir campground in 2007 to provide shade and landscaping. Since then, numerous trees have died in the campground and need to be replaced with approximately 20 new trees. The project consists of removing the dead trees and planting the new ones. The trees are on a drip irrigation system and careful removal of the dead trees is important to locate the drip lines and place the new trees in ground without damaging the drip lines.