Emerging Issue: Federal and Private Lands

Old-growth Forests

There has been increased discussion about the management of federal lands and the concept of multiple use by citizens including forestry, grazing, mineral and energy use and recreation. Additionally, the private sector has debated the concept of natural asset companies and listing them on the stock exchange.

The U.S. Forest Service recently announced their intention to amend 128 land management plans in 12 months and impose restrictions on the management of old-growth forests. Among other items, the order directs the U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management to “define, identify, and complete an inventory of old-growth and mature forests on Federal lands, accounting for regional and ecological variations, as appropriate, and shall make such inventory publicly available.” 

Michigan Farm Bureau filed comments and encouraged the agency to address the issue at the local level with input from the public. It’s imperative that our members understand, at a forest level, what is deemed old-growth forest and what activities may or may not be considered compatible in these areas and conditions. 

Natural Asset Companies

Although it was eventually withdrawn, the New York Stock Exchange recently proposed adopting a new listing standard for natural asset companies (NACs) to be listed on the exchange. The NAC definition is “a corporation whose primary purpose is to actively manage, maintain, restore (as applicable), and grow the value of natural assets and their production of ecosystem services.” 

As proposed, NACs would obtain “licenses” from private or public landowners for a 10-year or longer term and “hold the rights to the ecological performance (i.e., the value of natural assets and production of ecosystem services) produced by natural or working areas, such as national reserves or large-scale farmlands, and have the authority to manage the areas for conservation, restoration, or sustainable management. These rights can be licensed like other rights, including ‘run with the land’ rights (such as mineral rights, water rights, or air rights), and NACs are expected to license these rights from sovereign nations or private landowners.” The landowner, whether public or private, would negotiate with the NAC the terms of the license. The license terms would be publicly available. The proposal described “perpetuating industrial agriculture” as an unsustainable activity and citied agriculture as contributing to the loss of natural habitat and soil degradation. 

Thoughts to consider 

• What types of use do we support for federal lands? 
• How should old-growth forests be defined?
• How could changes in the old-growth proposal impact foresters that rely on federal land?
• How could a proposal for natural asset companies impact the availability or value of farmland?

Policy references

AFBF Policy #510 General Management

AFBF Policy #512 National Forest Management

AFBF Policy #537 Private Property Rights

Additional resources

USFS Proposes Firs-of-its Kind National Forest Plan Amendment to Conserve and Steward Old Growth Forests

MFB Comments to USFS

Federal Register notice on NYSE Natural Asset Companies

NYSE Ends Natural Resource Trade Plan