The National Wildlife Refuge Association congratulates Secretary Deb Haaland on her confirmation as Secretary of the Interior. Her confirmation as the first Native American in the position is groundbreaking and will help the Department of the Interior move towards an equitable and inclusive approach to wildlife conservation, visitation, and use of our public lands.

Several land management agencies are contained within DOI: The National Wildlife Refuge System, the National Park Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. As we look towards a future filled with uncertainty from climate change, the Department has the opportunity to put these lands to work conserving wildlife populations, providing wildlife corridors, bringing new constituencies into land preservation, and offering an outdoor escape for people in every state and territory.

The National Wildlife Refuge System contains 80 million acres of land in Alaska, 20 million acres of land in the Lower 48 states, and 750 million acres of protected waters in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The scope of the Refuge System is staggering--it is the largest system of public lands and waters set aside for wildlife in the world.

Coral Gardens at Palmyra Atoll NWR by Kydd Pollock / USFWS

We believe that all national wildlife refuges should be properly staffed and maintained, closed to any resource exploitation, and open to the public for recreational uses that are compatible with the wildlife inhabiting those lands. We are confident that the new Secretary also holds these ideals, and we look forward to working closely with her over the next four years.

We are thrilled to welcome Secretary Haaland to the Department of the Interior.