Advertise on podcast: Our Public Lands

In this episode, I interview Ryan Callaghan, former hunting and fly-fishing guide who worked in PR & media at First Lite, led conservation efforts across MeatEater brands, and is now six months in as president and CEO of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (BHA), a 501(c)(3) advocating for public lands, waters, and wildlife. We discuss current threats including monument reductions, wilderness and WSA reviews, mineral-withdrawal rescissions, roadless rule rollback, land sells offs, unfair land exchanges, and Alaska issues. We debate roadless management, wilderness protections, declining public favorability toward hunting, beaver trapping restrictions, and public-lands livestock grazing, including permit buyouts and disagreement over whether grazing can be responsibly managed. 03:48 Montana Check In 05:04 Cal’s Background 06:24 From Guiding to Media 09:18 Leading BHA Today 11:40 Mission of BHA 12:29 Fighting Land Sell Offs 16:29 Alaska Dalton Corridor 19:02 Crazy Mountains Land Swap 20:53 Roadless Rule Debate 29:51 Wilderness Reviews and WSAs 32:41 Gallatin Range 37:44 Hunting Favorability Decline 38:52 Disconnected From Food 40:15 Defending Hunting 42:17 Beaver Trapping Debate 51:36 Ungulate Habitat Threats 53:06 Grazing Impacts 55:47 Permit Buyouts And Policy 58:10 Cows To Condos 01:03:00 Wild Horses And Wrap Up Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Roadless Areas contain some of my favorite places on our National Forest lands. Some of your favorites spots are probably in Roadless Areas as well. Unlike wilderness areas, there are no wooden signs you pass or lines crossed on the map. These invisible boundaries are often traversed without us knowing. Please read on for some useful links and information. And how you can submit your comments to USDA on the Roadless Rule rescission. Despite the rhetoric that you hear from national and state big green NGOs, Roadless Areas should not be considered as “protected lands.” Extraction like logging and livestock grazing are occurring in Roadless Areas right now. The information below was discussed in the video for your reference: Early government surveys found that ponderosa forests were 17x denser than claimed. And mixed conifer forests are 4x denser. Baker et al. 2023 A comprehensive analysis of 1,500 wildfires in the west found they burned slower and less intensely in protected areas. Bradley et al. 2016 34% of “fuels reduction logging” occurs in Inventoried Roadless Areas according to Healey 2020. This tradeoff (better firefighting, more human-caused fires) partially explains why the presence of roads is relatively neutral with respect to the long term occurrence of fire in national forests. Management records also indicated that a lack of roads did not prevent fuel reduction efforts in IRAs between 2001 and 2019. IRAs contain approximately 21% of the total tree cover across NFS (Homer et al 2015); those areas accounted for 34% of the total fuel treatment activities and 8% of the total area treated (USDA 2019a). A lack of roads in IRAs has not implied passive fire risk management. The Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act would designate 23 million acres of Inventoried Roadless Areas as new wilderness in OR, WA, ID, MT, and WY. Submit your comment here for the Roadless Rule rescission here → http://www.Roadless.org Some talking points to consider: * I oppose the Forest Service’s proposal to rescind the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule. * The Forest Service should strengthen the Roadless Rule, not eliminate it. The current rule provides essential protections but still permits damaging activities in Inventoried Roadless Areas. * Rescission would remove national protections from approximately 45 million acres of National Forest lands, exposing intact wildlife habitat and watersheds to additional logging, grazing-related roads, mining, and fragmentation. * Research examining 1,500 fires shows that protected (unroaded) forests burn at lower intensity and have lower rates of fire spread when controlled for weather conditions. Roads can increase human-caused fire ignitions and spread invasive plants. * The Forest Service should close loopholes that permit logging and the construction of so-called “temporary roads” in roadless areas. Temporary roads can cause lasting harm to wildlife habitat, soils, and watersheds. * The 2001 Roadless Rule does not address livestock-grazing impacts, and grazing has continued uninterrupted in Inventoried Roadless Areas. A mapping analysis estimates that between 10 million and 15 million acres of these lands are actively grazed by domestic livestock each year. Livestock can damage streams and springs, remove riparian vegetation, compact soils, spread invasive plants, and displace native wildlife. New road construction would enable harmful livestock grazing to expand. * The Forest Service should prioritize voluntary grazing-permit retirement within roadless areas and close vacant allotments and allotments where grazing conflicts with roadless-area values. * The existing rule does not prohibit hardrock mining claims under the General Mining Law of 1872, and mineral leasing can continue. USDA should ask the Secretary of the Interior to withdraw Inventoried Roadless Areas from mineral entry under section 204 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, subject to valid existing rights. The Forest Service should also prohibit new mineral leasing within these lands.More than 9,000 miles of mapped motorized trails cross roadless areas.. Motorized use can compact soils, spread invasive species, disturb wildlife, fragment secure habitat, and increase human-caused wildfire risk. Inventoried Roadless Areas should be nonmotorized by default, with narrow exceptions for valid existing rights, necessary administrative access, and emergencies. * The Forest Service should withdraw the proposed rescission and adopt a stronger national rule that protects roadless lands from commercial logging, unnecessary roads, damaging grazing, new mineral development, and harmful motorized use. Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Erik Molvar, executive director of Western Watersheds Project to talk about cheatgrass, an annual invasive grass taking over large areas of the America West. Cheatgrass is an invasive Eurasian annual that arrived in contaminated crop seed and spread through the West via rail corridors and especially through cattle and sheep, whose fur carries its spiny seeds. Erik argues cheatgrass establishes where perennial bunchgrasses have been knocked back by disturbance—particularly chronic livestock grazing—rejecting claims that it is primarily a fire-driven phenomenon, citing fires in ungrazed areas that recovered with native bunchgrasses rather than cheatgrass. Erik describes how cheatgrass grows briefly in spring, then dies into highly flammable fine fuel that enables large rangeland fires, kills sagebrush, and can lock landscapes into cheatgrass monocultures with fire-return intervals now around 30–40 years in invaded areas. He outlines identification tips, notes other invasive annual grasses, disputes blaming wild horses as the main vector, critiques herbicide-and-reseed approaches, and emphasizes long-term rest from grazing to allow native seed banks and bunchgrasses to recover and resist reinvasion. Cheatgrass Monograph www.westernwatersheds.org 04:40 About Western Watersheds Project 07:40 Overgrazing Impacts 11:22 Grazing Economics Reality 18:50 Pivot to Cheatgrass 19:13 Cheatgrass Origins Spread 21:47 Grazing Link Denial 28:23 Fire Fuel Feedback 30:01 Identify Cheatgrass 31:50 Other Invasive Grasses 35:23 Invasives Ecology Ethics 43:14 New Fire Intervals 48:25 Recovery Without Cows 54:56 Cheatgrass and Ranching 58:12 Wild Horses Scapegoat 01:00:54 Herbicides Reseeding Limits 01:04:40 Manager Playbook 01:10:44 Buyouts and Restoration Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview George Nickas, the outgoing executive director of Wilderness Watch. George discusses ending his 30-year tenure at Wilderness Watch as the group transitions to new executive leadership under Dana Johnson. George recounts Wilderness Watch’s origins in 1989 in response to illegal outfitter caches and proposed lodges in the River of No Return country, then describes early battles against helicopter landing zones and monitoring flights in Tongass wilderness and winning the Cumberland Island case (Wilderness Watch v. Mainella) banning motorized van tours. He highlights key litigation on wild rivers, Boundary Waters motor use, rebuilding structures, and the Buffalo Creek case opposing fish-poisoning/restocking as unlawful “trammeling,” now on appeal. George warns of agency budget cuts, policy rollbacks, recreation commercialization, chainsaw proposals, grazing impacts, and the decline of “big green” advocacy, arguing wilderness needs vigilant enforcement and champions, and a new dedicated wilderness agency overseeing these federal public lands. www.wildernesswatch.org 01:17 Why Fight Wilderness Fires 02:26 Thirty Years In 03:25 How It Began 07:00 Early Battles 10:06 Cumberland Island Case 13:04 Courts And The Act 15:18 Key Legal Wins 17:21 Buffalo Creek Untrammeled 22:10 Why Watchdogs Matter 25:24 Programs Gutted 27:13 Need A Wilderness Agency 30:05 Logging Loopholes 36:41 Fire Hysteria Pushback 38:28 Recreation Impacts 39:49 Wildlife Displacement Costs 41:00 Recreation Industry Pressure 43:07 Exceptions Eroding Wilderness 45:14 Trails Chainsaws Enforcement 49:45 Policy Attacks Funding Loopholes 57:14 Big Greens Movement Critique 01:05:15 Career Reflections Future Fight 01:10:35 Public Lands Birthright 01:12:34 Retirement Staying Involved Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Tim Ingalsbee, co-founder and executive director of Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology (FUSEE). Tim and I discuss his critiques of the new U.S. Wildland Fire Service, arguing consolidation is framed as efficiency but functions as defunding, job shedding, and a suppression-first “Fire Force” detached from land stewardship, able to override local land managers. Tim says federal fire management is failing due to an obsolete full-suppression paradigm, reinforced by “attack all fires” directives, which wastes resources, increases hazards, and can worsen ecological damage. He advocates strategic suppression and an Alaska-style triage model, prioritizing protection of lives, communities, and infrastructure while living with fire for ecological benefit. Our conversation covers problems with thinning for timber, home ignitability and community-wide mitigation, workforce programs like the Oregon Conservation Corps, Indigenous fire stewardship, cultural change away from militarized firefighting, and FUSEE’s work promoting proactive fire management and policy reform. Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology (FUSEE) Oregon Conservation Corps S. 3609 (The Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act) H.R. 948 (The SAFE HOME Act) 03:26 New Wildland Fire Service 05:50 Consolidation Risks And Missions 10:18 Attack All Fires Directive 14:29 Strategic Suppression Triage 18:33 Smokey Bear Myths 22:35 Thinning/Prescribed Fire Debate 28:05 Home Ignition Zone Focus 32:47 Community Workforce Programs 35:46 Preparing Communities For Fire 38:03 Fireproofing Homes First 39:28 Oregon Conservation Corps Model 40:28 Indigenous Fire Stewardship 44:53 Living in the Pyrocene 47:04 Militarized Firefighting Culture 49:31 Toxic Tools and Home Hazmat 52:31 Firefighters as Stewards 55:23 Epiphanies on the Fireline 59:51 FUSEE Mission and Advocacy 01:01:08 Prescribed Burn Smoke Concerns Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I speak with Defenders of Wildlife’s Kelly Cox and Christian Hunt about the Wildlife Corridors Act and why it’s needed to counter habitat fragmentation and improve wildlife movement across landscapes that don’t match jurisdictional boundaries. They explain the bill’s goal of creating a national wildlife corridors system focused primarily on federal lands, requiring agencies to coordinate through a corridor committee, use mapping and science to prioritize corridors, and adopt implementing regulations within a couple years of enactment. The act defines connectivity around movements that support genetic exchange, range shifting/expansion, seasonal movement, and recolonization after disturbances, with urgency heightened by climate-driven range shifts. Beyer, Buchanan, Lofgren, and Fitzpatrick Introduce Bipartisan Legislation To Support Wildlife Migration and Protect Biodiversity www.defenders.org 02:59 Meet Kelly and Christian 03:39 Defenders Parks Program 06:45 Refuges Rulemaking and Predators 10:38 Why Corridors Matter 14:48 Defining Connectivity and Roads 17:53 Climate and Private Lands 21:14 State Models and Crossings Funding 28:04 Science and Political Hurdles 31:16 Mapping Agencies and Sideboards 36:36 Economics ESA and Future Vision 43:49 Public Lands Reflections Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

I this episode, I interview Dave Stalling, writer and wildlife advocate based in Missoula, Montana. Dave recounts his time serving in Marine Corps Force Recon, struggling for years with self-acceptance, and finding his footing by spending long periods alone in remote Montana wildlands, influenced by Doug Peacock’s Grizzly Years and writers like Edward Abbey and Jack Turner. Dave explains his deep connection to grizzlies as teachers of humility, and critiques how modern hunting culture, commercialization, and hunter-dominated agencies use “science” to justify politically driven predator killing and maximizing harvest of game animals. Dave argues wildlife management should include all citizens, discusses ballot initiatives, and shares how hiking with his son Cory, who has a muscular disease, taught him to slow down, notice small details, and practice “forest bathing.” https://substack.com/@davidstalling Doug Peacock’s Grizzly Years Jack Turner’s The Abstract Wild 01:47 Meet David Stalling 03:27 Gray Hair Hypocrisy 05:21 Force Recon Self Acceptance 08:32 Father Roots in Wild 12:53 Grizzlies Teach Humility 16:43 Hunting Culture Critique 17:32 Anti Hunter Who Hunts 25:20 Science Versus Politics 27:03 Elk Bears Misused Science 34:59 Commercialized Hunting Takeover 37:51 Conservation Groups Letdown 38:51 Reforming Wildlife Management 40:33 Ballot Initiatives vs Science 45:31 Calling Out Hunter Culture 47:54 How Dave Learned to Write 53:05 Lessons From Cory 58:18 Rethinking Wild Places 01:03:56 Forest Bathing and Healing 01:07:17 Public Lands Are Everything Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Alex Kelloff, a first-time candidate running in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District. Alex launched his campaign after Donald Trump’s 2024 reelection, citing concerns about January 6, public-lands selloffs and leasing for oil and gas, federal land-agency staffing cuts, and opposition to Republican Rep. Jeff Hurd and Project 2025-style policies. We discuss top voter concerns including cost of living, rural hospital instability, Medicaid cuts, and the need for universal affordable healthcare with an independently managed public system. Drawing on a 30+ year telecom career, Alex critiques AI data-center “land grab” spending, opposes data centers in his district due to land, water, and utility constraints, and discusses renewable transmission, mining tradeoffs, and public-lands governance. https://alexkelloff.com/ 00:57 Episode Preview Alex Kelloff 02:54 Campaign Trail and Voter Struggles 05:15 Public Lands as Economic Lifeline 06:00 Inside Colorado Third District 08:13 Why He’s Running Now 10:52 Trump Era Impacts on Public Lands 12:22 Top Issues Healthcare and Hospitals 14:14 Universal Healthcare Vision 17:33 Telecom Career and Infrastructure 20:44 AI Data Centers and Public Lands 22:31 AI Land Grab 28:46 Opposing Data Centers in District 30:05 Siting Data Centers Smartly 30:43 Geothermal Drilling Risks 31:43 Mining Materials Tradeoffs 35:46 Rare Earths and War Strategy 39:05 Renewables on Public Lands 41:23 Transmission and Grid Bottlenecks 44:13 RMPs and Project 2025 49:41 Grazing Permit Retirement 51:47 Public Private Models Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Paul Lynn, a Walla Walla, Washington-based mycology educator, business owner and public-lands advocate, about fungal ecology, mycelium networks, and how logging disrupts soils’ “sponge” function that stores and releases water. Paul links fungi to forest hydrology, climate processes, and a precautionary approach given how little is known about fungal communities. Our conversation focuses on the 38,000-acre Tiger Mill Project, a quote, unquote, “wildfire-risk-reduction timber sale” in and around Walla Walla’s heavily protected municipal watershed within a roadless area adjacent to the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness. Paul argues the project is a subsidized extraction effort using black-box models and flawed assumptions, risking worsening forest drying, fire behavior, sedimentation, and flood impacts in a rain-on-snow zone, and is positioned as a pilot for watershed logging elsewhere like in Bend and Portland Oregon, and Seattle, Washington. https://youtube.com/shorts/XX0jIhtVjFg https://youtube.com/shorts/qOhp9yqJidU https://youtube.com/shorts/hLPbptKCzYE https://youtube.com/shorts/fFXVC_Hldl8 Confluence Series Walla Walla Watersheds Fungaia 02:18 Meet Paul Lynn 03:41 Mycology to Ecology 06:36 Mycelium and Precaution 08:43 Logging Impacts Soil Sponge 10:47 Foraging and Drought 12:33 Disturbance Morels and Spores 15:01 Responsible Mushroom Picking 18:04 Roots and Walla Walla 20:55 Blue Mountains Microclimates 24:48 Into Forest Activism 29:15 Tiger Mill Pilot Project 32:55 Wildfire Risk Narrative 34:48 Water Stakes Floods and Fire 36:59 Why Logging Worsens Hydrology 40:21 Fire History and Recovery 41:39 Endless Management Loop 42:59 Trout After Wildfire 44:41 Local Politics And Players 48:36 Fire Risk Logging Debate 51:05 Grassroots Education Strategy 54:58 Money Grants And Liability 59:13 Tiger Mill Project Details 01:02:36 Modeling And NEPA Loopholes 01:08:12 Flood Risk And Sediment 01:12:07 Water Scarcity Big Picture 01:16:18 Confluence Series And Links Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Sam Forstag, a former Missoula-based Forest Service smokejumper and union local vice president now running for Congress in Montana’s 1st District, motivated by DOGE-related cuts that fired many of his co-workers and by frustration with Rep. Ryan Zinke’s lack of response. Forstag shares his upbringing, education at the University of Montana, and eight years in firefighting, arguing that gutting agencies leads to privatization, higher costs, and weaker public-land stewardship. Our conversation covers money in politics, Citizens United, tax-code inequities, and healthcare. We debate and discuss public lands issues around wildfire strategy, WUI priorities, fuels work, NEPA timelines and staffing, logging versus local milling capacity, roadless-rule repeal, and the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act. “Fuel Reduction” Logging Exacerbates Wildfire Effects and Puts Communities at Greater Risk Rising wildfire risk to houses in the United States, especially in grasslands and shrublands Home hardening and defensible space can halve wildfire damage, study finds A More Effective Approach for Preventing Wildland-Urban Fire Disasters Jack Cohen, PhD; Research Physical Scientist; US Forest Service, retired Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act 03:55 DOGE Cuts Spark Campaign 06:57 Unionizing The Forest Service 09:49 Organizing Spreads To NPS 13:56 Money In Politics 17:19 Healthcare Medicare Choice 22:22 Why Run For Congress 26:31 Life As A Smokejumper 28:31 Letting Fire Burn 31:42 WUI Home Hardening Debate 33:09 Fuels Work And Logging Nuance 36:26 Fuels Treatments 38:03 Home Hardening 41:33 WUI Definition 44:48 NEPA Timelines and Courts 53:18 Local Timber Milling 01:01:00 Restoration Jobs With NREPA 01:04:24 Roadless Rule Under Threat Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I interview Alison Fox, executive director of American Prairie, about the organization’s 25-year effort to build a 3.2-million-acre grassland reserve anchored by the 1.1-million-acre Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. Ali describes on-the-ground restoration including a bison herd grown from 16 animals to nearly 1,000, fence modification/removal, stream work, junk removal, and prairie dog restoration, plus wildlife successes like swift fox reintroduction and grizzly sightings. Our conversation centers on BLM’s proposed reversal of a 2022 decision allowing bison grazing on seven allotments they lease in Phillips County, introducing a new “production” standard under the Taylor Grazing Act that could affect other bison permittees and tribal herds; American Prairie has protested and is preparing further challenges while contingency-planning for herd relocation. Ali also discuss public access and hunting programs, local reactions and misconceptions, donor criticism, tribal partnerships, and a closing invitation to visit the reserve and the importance of public lands. www.americanprairie.org 03:33 Meet Alison Fox 04:27 Alison’s Background and Montana 05:51 American Prairie Mission 06:45 Origins and Why Grasslands Matter 08:03 Acreage Breakdown and BLM Leases 09:25 On the Ground Restoration Work 11:39 Wildlife Comebacks Swift Fox 13:23 Rewilding and Grizzly Return 15:57 Land Acquisition and Ranching Leases 17:48 Anchor Ranch and Public Access 20:20 BLM Move to Rescind Bison Grazing 24:33 Taylor Grazing Act Production Standard 27:01 Precedent Risks and Next Steps 28:42 Contingency Plans 30:39 Cattle Only Permit Shift 31:05 State Land Legal Fight 31:47 Tribal Partnerships 35:20 Stocking Rate Decisions 36:08 Bison Versus Cattle 38:10 Donors And Transparency 41:55 Local Reception And Critics 44:01 Hunting Access Programs 46:05 Dispelling Bison Myths 49:13 Negative Bison Easements 50:15 Working With BLM 50:50 Visit American Prairie 51:54 Why Public Lands Matter Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Do you value this program? I am a one-man operation and could use your support! Thank you In this episode, I am joined by Wanda Culp and Joshua Wright to discuss their new film, Land Less, and the “Landless Bill” (S.2554 / H.R.41), that would transfer 115,000 acres of Southeast Alaska public lands on the Tongass National Forest—about 60,000 currently protected by the Roadless Rule—to new Native corporations created under ANCSA. They describe ANCSA’s corporate model and contend past Tongass transfers, including the 2014 Sealaska Bill and the Alaska Mental Health Trust exchange, have repeatedly led to large-scale old-growth clearcut logging. They criticize major environmental groups like The Nature Conservancy and The Wilderness Society for supporting the bill, warning it functions as a workaround to NEPA and federal oversight, and discuss Sealaska’s cease-and-desist letter over a filmed boardroom scene. www.LandLessFilm.com 00:56 Episode Preview Landless Bill 02:12 Alaska Land Transfers Context 04:04 Meet Wanda and Joshua 04:24 Why Make Landless? 06:47 Wanda’s Story 09:22 Past Tongass Transfer Deals 11:41 Why Landless Enables Logging 14:41 Big Greens Backlash 18:43 Sealaska Cease and Desist 28:32 Tribal Governance and Youth 34:07 No Public Process After Transfer 38:44 Climate Crisis and Extraction 41:30 How to Take Action Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I speak with long-time wilderness advocate Gary MacFarlane. Gary discusses moving from Idaho to France, still active with Wilderness Watch and Friends of the Clearwater, he explains his long connection to the Northern Rockies and why the Clearwater Basin is so special to him, with diverse habitats and notable wildlife history including wolves, grizzly sightings, and the decline of woodland caribou tied to habitat change and human access. Our conversation covers threats to roadless areas, weaknesses and loopholes in the Roadless Rule, and the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act. We discuss mechanized recreation, core Wilderness Act protections, and concerns about Forest Service ties to industry, outsourcing, and reorganization harming wilderness stewardship, plus critiques of fire-logging justifications. 02:03 Idaho to France Life 03:17 Wild Places in France 05:29 Why the Clearwater Matters 07:29 Inland Rainforest Ecology 09:15 Wolves Grizzlies Caribou 14:29 Roadless Rule Loopholes 16:41 Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act 19:26 Politics Jobs and Subsidies 24:10 Recreation Versus Wilderness 29:54 What Wilderness Protects 31:46 Logging Bans Explained 32:38 Grazing and Guiding Loopholes 34:10 Chainsaws and Trail Ethics 36:33 Forest Service Reorg Fallout 38:58 Losing Wilderness Professionals 45:23 Devolution to State Control 47:29 Research Stations and Fire Science 50:32 Privatization and Canada Warning 53:25 Reform Ideas for New Agencies 58:26 Prescribed Fire and Home Hardening Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, I speak with Ryan Busse, Democratic congressional candidate running in MT-01. He is currently projected to win the upcoming primary election in early June. On public lands issues in Congress, Ryan argues calls and letters aren’t enough without electoral change, citing the example of the recent vote on the Boundary Waters, and lays out his case as to why he’ll be a strong fighter for public lands in Washington for all Americans. We discuss “collaborative conservation” and Montana public-lands bills that protect limited wilderness acres at the expense of vast swaths of roadless forests. We discuss Montana’s logging past, new economies, the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, restoration jobs, and a wildfire approach focused on home hardening and defensible space rather than backcountry logging. https://busseformontana.com 00:34 Guest Intro 03:36 Campaign Life on the Road 05:17 Boundary Waters Disaster 08:10 Public Lands Laws 09:40 Zinke and Daines Exit 11:57 Hunting Season Sacrifices 12:56 Public Lands Campaign Plan 15:28 Why Elect True Advocates? 17:24 Busse’s Conservation Resume 19:13 Democratic Opponents 21:20 Public Lands for All Americans 23:23 Polls and Montana’s Stakes 25:17 Public Lands on the Ballot 25:59 Collaborative Conservation 27:43 Why Collaboration Fails 29:31 Montana’s Collaborative Bills 32:45 Roadless Habitat 35:43 NREPA and Restoration Jobs 37:30 Wild Places Drive the Economy 41:30 Lumber Mill Automation and Jobs 43:42 Wildfire Science and Home Hardening 48:09 Election Stakes Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Please consider “upgrading” your subscription to support my work U.S. Senate passed H.J. Res. 140 (50–49) to overturn a 20-year mineral withdrawal protecting 225,504 acres in the Boundary Waters’ Rainy River headwaters, sending the resolution to President Trump. Ingrid explains the Quetico-Superior ecosystem’s vulnerability to sulfide copper mining, the history of canceled Twin Metals leases and the 2023 public land order, and argues the Congressional Review Act use is unprecedented and threatens broader public land orders. She outlines next steps including likely issuance of federal mineral leases, expedited federal and state permitting and environmental review, possible litigation, and pursuing permanent protections through federal and Minnesota legislation, while urging supporters to thank supportive senators, hold others accountable, volunteer, donate, and stay engaged. Save the Boundary Waters Action Fund 00:56 Senate Vote Fallout 02:08 Meet Ingrid Lyons 02:49 Why the Boundary Waters Matter 05:26 Mining Threat Explained 06:51 How Protections Were Won 09:48 Withdrawal Area Breakdown 11:42 Legislative Attacks Timeline 13:34 How the CRA Was Used 17:02 Senate Vote and Precedent 18:51 Coalition Strength and Vote Count 23:23 What Happens Next 28:56 How You Can Help 33:23 Q and A Begins Get full access to Our Public Lands Podcast at ourpubliclandspodcast.substack.com/subscribe