The Long Run · Episode 7 of 7 · 20 min
The Greatest Good for Whom? The 2026 Fight Over Public-Land Grazing
In 2026 Washington moved to lock in grazing "no net loss" even as three-quarters of grazing land is renewed with no environmental review. The finale weighs the reckoning and the alternatives, including voluntary permit buyouts, recreation and restoration, then returns to Pinchot's promise and the land of many abuses to deliver a verdict.
Who's who
- Gifford Pinchot+12 more episodesFirst Chief of the Forest Service; author of the founding creed
- Doug Burgum+3 more episodesInterior Secretary; co-signer of the 2026 grazing memorandum
- Brooke Rollins+4 more episodesAgriculture Secretary; co-signer of the 2026 grazing memorandum
- Adam Smith+2 more episodesRepresentative who introduced the Voluntary Grazing Permit Retirement Act
Timeline
- 1905Transfer Act moves the forest reserves to Agriculture; Pinchot states the creed
- 2013BLM authorizes grazing on 47% of its acreage without environmental review
- 2014A defense bill rider authorizes automatic 10-year permit renewal
- 2023Share of BLM grazing land renewed without review reaches about 75%
- October 2025Voluntary Grazing Permit Retirement Act introduced
- March 2026Burgum and Rollins sign the grazing memorandum affirming no net loss
Still debated
Whether the memorandum's no-net-loss language works as a hard cattle floor or a soft aspiration consistent with applicable law is disputed between the agencies and watchdog readings. Reported narrowing of public standing to appeal grazing decisions was not confirmed from regulatory text.
Connected episodes in other series
Selling Off the West: The 2025-26 Fight Over America's Public LandsThe Uncosted West · Episode 15Also features Brooke Rollins, Doug Burgum
How One Arizona Hillside Built Modern ForestryGround Truth: Forest Service Research · Episode 1Also features Gifford Pinchot
How America Made Indigenous Fire a Crime, and Its ReturnThe Fire This Time · Episode 3Also features Gifford Pinchot
The Fight Over FishFishing for a Solution · Episode 1Also features Gifford Pinchot