UPDATE: May 6 The Biden administration on Thursday released an initial report outlining its vision for conserving 30% of Americas lands and waters by 2030 a document that completely upends Republican claims that the administration is planning to seize or control private land to get there.

The 24-page report outlines a 10-year locally led initiative to conserve and restore lands and waters, slash planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions and address inequalities in who has access to nature areas. While the effort is likely to come with new federal land and water protections, the report focuses primarily on supporting efforts at the state and local levels.

It includes a commitment to collaboration, support for voluntary and locally led conservation and honoring of Tribal sovereignty and private property rights.

PREVIOUSLY:

A right-wing, anti-federal lands group is leading a disinformation campaign against the Biden administrations effort to protect 30% of Americas lands and oceans by 2030.

The 30x30 initiative aims to combat the dual climate and extinction crises and is backed by scientists, environmental groups and hundreds of state and local leaders. President Joe Biden set the national target in January, part of a rash of early environmental executive orders.

Since then, American Stewards of Liberty , a little-known Texas group with ties to both the Trump administration and the fossil fuel industry, has worked to drum up opposition at the county and state level. It has characterized the proposal as a federal land grab before the Biden administration has even unveiled details about how it plans to achieve its goals and stoked fear in rural communities across the West and Midwest.

The Colorado Sun first reported on the opposition campaign last week, which includes holding training sessions on how to fight 30x30 and convincing local governments to pass prefabricated resolutions opposing it. To date, two dozen counties across nine states, including Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming, have adopted the organizations model resolutions , according to a tally on American Stewards website. Another 11 counties have resolutions in the works.

In its Guide to Fight the 30 x 30 Land Grab , American Stewards of Liberty claims 30x30 is being advanced by radical environmental activists and is an unconstitutional policy shift, moving us from a nation founded on private property principles to one controlled by the administrative state.

American Stewards of Liberty says it is dedicated to protecting private property rights, defending the use of our land, and restoring local control. It was formed in 1992 when two conservative groups merged. One of those groups, Stewards of the Range, was established to defend Nevada ranchers Wayne and Jean Hage, who battled the Forest Service for years over unpermitted grazing on public lands, long before Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy made headlines and fueled an extremist militia movement.

Margaret Byfield, the Hages daughter, is the founder and executive director of American Stewards.