President Trump signed an executive order on Thursday establishing a Make America Beautiful Again Commission to “promote responsible stewardship of natural resources while driving economic growth” on historically protected public land.
The commission, to be chaired by Doug Burgum, the interior secretary, and composed of top federal officials and cabinet secretaries, will expand access in parks and forests “while promoting a wide range of outdoor recreation opportunities like hunting, fishing, hiking, biking, skiing, climbing, boating, off-roading, and wildlife viewing,” the order says. It notes that in 2023, the recreation economy supported five million jobs.
The action comes as the Trump administration has pushed to open vast areas of public land and federal waters, reversing climate policies enacted by the Biden administration that restricted drilling, mining and other activities across public lands and federal waters.
The administration announced plans in June to eliminate federal protections across millions of acres of Alaskan wilderness, which would allow drilling and mining in some of the last remaining pristine wilderness in the country. In April, the administration opened thousands of acres of land in Nevada and New Mexico to oil and gas drilling and hard-rock mining.
Mr. Trump maintains that climate change is a hoax and has signed a barrage of executive orders to promote fossil fuels and withdraw support for renewable energy.
The executive order said that “conservation and economic growth go hand in hand” and that by boosting the outdoor recreation economy and promoting activities like hunting, fishing and hiking, “America can preserve its natural beauty and expand outdoor recreation opportunities for future generations.”
Ashley Ahn covers breaking news for The Times from New York.
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