Stories From the Field:  National Landscape Conservation System

The BLM's National Landscape Conservation System contains some of the West’s most spectacular landscapes and includes more than 886 areas  --  approximately 27 million acres.
      

Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River
By Theresa Herrera

The Rio Grande is one of the first eight rivers Congress designated in 1968 as part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.  The river and its tributaries have attracted people for thousands of years. 
  
  

Owyhee Canyonlands:  A Lesson in Perseverance
By Robin Fehlau

The remote desert canyonlands of southwest Idaho have long been a political battlefield.  For years, environmentalists, ranchers, and recreationists disagreed on how this fragile beautiful landscape should be managed and preserved.
   
  

The NLCS Extends to the Subtropics
By Bruce Dawson

The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse Outstanding Natural Area has natural and cultural resources not typically found on BLM-managed public lands.  It is one of the rare geographic points on the planet where these two sets of resource values intersect in such striking fashion.
 
 

 The Beauty Behind the Badlands
By Jaclyn Waggoner

The lava flows in the area constitute one of the most significant volcanic areas in the United States, comparable to Hawaii.  The name El Malpais is Spanish for “the badlands,” named because of the rugged lava terrain. 

Managing a Modern Day Fossil Bone Rush
By Alan L. Titus

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument was established by Presidential proclamation in late 1996.  The proclamation made specific reference to “world class” fossil resources of the Late Cretaceous age in the Kaiparowits Plateau region.
   
  

Pulling Together to Preserve History
By Mike Abel

Dust, heat, wind, cold . . . hardships, joys, triumphs, challenges . . . the adventure, the gamble, the seemingly endless march—all were experienced by travelers heading westward, and all are part of a great story.