United
States Department of Agriculture
Forest
Service
Lands
and Realty Management
Landownership
Adjustment
Special Use
Authorizations and Administration
Boundary and
Title Management
Valuation
Our
Mission
The
Lands and Realty Management program secures and protects the American public’s
rights, title, value, and interests in its national forests and grasslands and
authorizes a variety of uses on those lands to meet the needs of present and
future generations.
Our
Goal
More than 192
million acres of public land are managed as national forests and grasslands. The
protection of these lands and resources is a fundamental Forest Service
responsibility. Through direct land management practices, the Lands and Realty
Management program enables the agency to better manage Federal lands within or
adjacent to NFS boundaries and deliver the necessary products and services that
are essential for enhancing natural resource stewardship and providing for the
public’s enjoyment, future use, and access to NFS lands.
Our
Activities
Lands and Realty
Management is carried out through four major activities:• Landownership
Adjustment• Special Use
Authorizations and Administration•
Boundary and
Title Management• ValuationSecurity and protection of the
public’s interests in National Forest System (NFS) lands is essential to the
land stewardship and public trust responsibilities of the Forest Service. To
obtain these goals we will:•
Capture
opportunities to consolidate landownership patterns, through exchange,
acquisition, and conveyance of lands to meet the objectives of forest land and
resource management plans and to improve land management
efficiencies.• Meet the needs of
adjacent landowners and the public for energy, utility services, access,
communications, transportation, and national security.• Secure and
protect the rights, title, land, and resources of public land from unauthorized
use and occupancy by providing legally defensible boundaries and accurate,
complete landownership records of NFS lands.•
Assure the public
receives a fair return for use or conveyance of public assets and for
acquisition of private property.
Providing
for Present and Future Generations
What
We Do
Landownership
Adjustment
Exchange lands to
achieve a desired national forest landownership pattern that supports forest
land and resource goals and objectives, addresses frag-mentation, reduces future
management costs, and responds to urban and community needs.• Purchase land
through the Land and Water Con-servation Fund to protect critical resource areas
and provide increased public recreation opportunities.• Accept donations
of land to consolidate national forest system lands and protect critical
resource areas.• Improve legal
public use of NFS lands by acquiring rights-of-way for roads and
trails.• Assure that
market value is obtained for lands or interests in lands to protect the public
and private property owner’s interest.
Special
Uses
Authorize and
administer use of public lands by individuals, companies, organized groups,
other Federal agencies and State or local levels of government in a manner that
protects natural resource values and public health and safety. For
example:• Authorize uses
that contribute to the Nation’s infrastructure for generating and transmitting
energy resources, such as:♦
electric
transmission facilities♦
oil and gas
pipelines♦
hydropower
facilities♦
wind and solar
facilities• Authorize uses
for communications, commerce, public health and safety, and homeland security,
such as:♦
fiber-optic and
wireless telecommunications♦
water development
systems♦
Federal, State,
and local highways• Issue
authorizations needed by landowners to exercise statutory rights and outstanding
and reserved interests in NFS lands.
Boundary
and Title Management•
Survey national
forest boundaries to identify and protect public lands.• Maintain records
of national forest land areas, land transactions, land status, permitted uses,
and easements.• Resolve
landownership cases related to title claims, trespass, and unauthorized uses to
protect public access and achieve effective management of NFS
lands.
Valuation
Provide
independent, objective, and impartial appraisal and consulting services to
support landownership management and other Forest Service activities, such as
the Forest Legacy Program, litigation, leasing, and fire
management.
For
More Information
For more
information on our programs and activities, please
contact:
USDA Forest
Service
Lands and Realty
Management Staff1400 Independence Ave., SW
Mailstop
1124
Washington, DC
20250-1124
(202)
205-1248Fax: (202) 205-1604
Or visit our Web
site: http://www.fs.fed.us/land/staff
The USDA
is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
FS-803
August
2004