A sweeping Senate budget proposal threatens to force the sale of millions of acres of public land throughout the western United States, including more than 875,000 acres in the Los Padres National Forest, according to an analysis by Santa Barbara-based conservation organization Los Padres ForestWatch.
Buried in the Senate’s current budget reconciliation package is a provision that mandates the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management identify and sell off between 0.5% and 0.75% of all National Forest and BLM lands in eleven western states over the next five years, ForestWatch said.
Supporters claim the measure is aimed at addressing the housing crisis, but according to conservation groups, that’s a smokescreen for what amounts to a sweeping public land giveaway that will do nothing to provide safe or affordable housing, and will instead create new dangers for people and wildlife alike, ForestWatch said.
“Aside from our view that selling federal public land is a terrible idea in and of itself, most of the targeted land in Los Padres National Forest is extremely rugged and fire-prone,” said Bryant Baker, director of Conservation and Research at ForestWatch.
“Housing development in these areas would not only be enormously expensive but would also cause irreparable damage to open spaces, impede wildlife movement across an already fragmented landscape, and put more people and homes at risk of damage from inevitable wildfires.”
An analysis by ForestWatch finds that much of the land at risk is steep, remote, and lacks basic infrastructure like roads or water.
These parcels lie in some of California’s highest wildfire hazard zones, where development would not only expose new residents to danger, but also increase the likelihood of human-caused ignitions that could threaten existing nearby communities, according to ForestWatch.
“The bill casts an alarmingly wide net in determining which public lands can be sold. Even iconic places like Pine Mountain could be up for grabs,” ForestWatch said.
ForestWatch warns, however, that parcels closest to existing communities — such as the Santa Barbara front-country, foothills of the Santa Ynez Valley, West Cuesta Ridge near San Luis Obispo, portions of the Big Sur coastline, and areas around Frazier Park and Pine Mountain Club — are the most likely targets.
A little over 105,000 acres of land eligible for sale in Los Padres National Forest is within one mile of populated areas according to ForestWatch’s analysis.
The bill also jeopardizes essential wildlife corridors. Los Padres National Forest serves as one of the last remaining linkages for species like mountain lions, black bears, and other wildlife to move across an increasingly fragmented landscape.
Selling off these public lands for private development would sever those connections and accelerate biodiversity loss, the watchdog group said.
“This proposal is not about housing, it’s about privatizing public lands for short-term gain,” said Baker.
ForestWatch is urging the Senate to reject public land sale provisions in the federal budget.
Community members can speak out and contact their senators through ForestWatch’s campaign page.