Western Landlocked Lands Report by onX/TRCP

[robby denning]

Hey Roksliders,
got this from onX yesterday. Very detailed report. Some of you are hoping they never solve this problem, I know, but it is alarming how much publicly-owned country can't be accessed without landowner permission. Link is below the executive summary:

In a report released this morning, it was found that 6.35 million acres of Western state lands are entirely landlocked by private lands.

onX, a Montana-based tech company, in collaboration with the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership released an in-depth study highlighting the accessibility of Western state lands. While many of America’s public outdoor recreation opportunities are found on national forests, national wildlife refuges, or BLM lands, the 2019 report focuses on lands managed by individual states.

Here is the executive summary:

There’s an interesting story here about how technology is revolutionizing how we use public lands. Modern mapping technologies are making it easier for sportsmen and women to identify areas of isolated or unmarked public lands. Nonetheless, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that many of the Western state lands are landlocked with no permanent public legal access. The report also reveals pockets of land in our country that remain untouched and pristine.

Full Report: https://bit.ly/2KADpZn

 

[Justin Crossley]

I just posted this story to our homepage as well. Interesting stuff.

 

[bitbckt]

Are there any organizations that try to "liberate" public land by buying parcels of private?

[edit] Answering my own question, here's one example: https://www.tpl.org

 

[Jimss]

If you go down a little ways in the document you'll notice that on the same website there is a link that there is 9.7 million acres of Federal landlocked public land. If you add state plus federal land together that is 15.8 million landlocked acres. Wow!

 

[TX_Diver]

Very interesting. I'm a little confused as the title states 6.35M acres of state land, then there's a brief reference to 9.7M of federal land, and then AZ is listed as having 131M acres of landlocked public land alone.

Regardless it's definitely something that's overlooked quite a bit...

 

[Justin Crossley]

It can be a hot topic too but I think it's good for the public to be aware. I don't think there is an easy or one-size-fits-all answer but it's something we should all be interested in improving.

 

[Joelweb]

Very interesting. I'm a little confused as the title states 6.35M acres of state land, then there's a brief reference to 9.7M of federal land, and then AZ is listed as having 131M acres of landlocked public land alone.

Regardless it's definitely something that's overlooked quite a bit...

Good catch. It's 1.31 million of state land in Arizona.

 

[dtrkyman]

Looks like an ultralight hang glider is a good investment!

 

[Bigwindymt]

If you add state plus federal land together that is 15.8 million landlocked acres. Wow!

I had to reread it because the intro to the article mentioned federal acreage, then switched to discussing state trust lands... Wow seems like an understatement!
There are a a lot of property owners who feel and operate like landlocked land is theirs. Interesting topic.

 

[Bigwindymt]

So, what would a good solution be to this dilemma?

 

[jkmola]

16M acres. About 25,000sq miles. Roughly 160 x 160 (miles). W. V. = 15.7M acres. Sheesh

 

[elkyinzer]

Wow, that's a whole lotta ground. I never understood how there aren't just easements to access the landlocked properties? I'm all aboard the keep it public train, but if there's no real solutions why not just cash the landlocked in and get it on the local tax rolls? As is, it is just a freebie handout to the adjoining LO's.

 

[Lead Drifter]

Somebody needs to Add Alaska to the List of Land Locked Properties , up here in AK the Native Lands settlement act of !971 has allowed them and their Corporate offices to Lock up access to millions of acre's by cherry picking Lands along the Road system throughout the State , I can Drive from Tok to Glenallen and not loose sight of the posted signs on the side of the road for what must be an 1 1/2 hour drive , with what amounts to approximately a Handful of Major roads throughout the state it has become a concern for the sporting public , Thank's Nixon

 

[GunsAreFun]

If the public cannot use it, the government (I.e. the public) shouldn’t own it.

 

[realunlucky]

If the public cannot use it, the government (I.e. the public) shouldn’t own it.

Why should we (the public) get rid of our property, when if it was private there would be an access easement?

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[GunsAreFun]

Why should we (the public) get rid of our property, when if it was private there would be an access easement?

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Private land does not guarantee easement, at least not in my state. There are regularly legal battles when one property that landlocks another is sold and the new owner doesn’t want to honor any spoken or unspoken agreements with the landlocked owner. Unless you have a deeded easement, you better have saved money for a legal battle or to buy an easement from the other owner.

 

[elkduds]

TRCP is working on this. are you in?

Four Ways States Are Solving the Landlocked Public Lands Problem | Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership

Landlocked doesn’t necessarily mean access is lost for good.

www.trcp.org

 

[realunlucky]

Private land does not guarantee easement, at least not in my state. There are regularly legal battles when one property that landlocks another is sold and the new owner doesn’t want to honor any spoken or unspoken agreements with the landlocked owner. Unless you have a deeded easement, you better have saved money for a legal battle or to buy an easement from the other owner.

Are you from Texas? Ok we (the public) have a whole slew of lawyers on the pay roll let's put them to work (yes that is an unrealistic assumption). Just as fyi public lands are worth fighting for, they aren't making any more any time soon.
Any time public land is sold or traded only the buyer/trader comes out ahead so why should the public agree to do it?

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[MattB]

What % of the total is landlocked?

 

[GunsAreFun]

Are you from Texas? Ok we (the public) have a whole slew of lawyers on the pay roll let's put them to work (yes that is an unrealistic assumption). Just as fyi public lands are worth fighting for, they aren't making any more any time soon.
Any time public land is sold or traded only the buyer/trader comes out ahead so why should the public agree to do it?

Sent from my moto z3 using Tapatalk

Sell the landlocked land to buy accessible land.