Public Lands and Private Rights

Robert H. Nelson is professor of environmental policy in the School of Public Affairs at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Nelson's book offers more new ideas and challenges to our thinking than any other recent work on the public lands. Anyone interested in the growing debate about public lands needs to read it, and read it soon. I can't think of anyone who has challenged public lands policy in such a thoughtful and intelligent way. -- William E. Riebsame, University of Colorado Professor Nelson provides a powerful yet easy-to-read view of how the dark side of the Progressive Movement-centralization, professionalization, bureaucratization-evolves into the pretensions of 'scientific management' and the hubris of 'ecosystem management' to the detriment of one-third of the nation's land. Here's a useful guide for those who would reform the way we use public lands. -- Philip M. Burgess, Center for the New West Addresses some of the most relevant resource policy debates in the late 1990's... As historical perspective and interpretation, this volume deserves a place on the bookshelves of those interested in western public lands and national forest management. American Journal of Agricultural Economics Anyone who has struggled to make sense of the history of public lands management in the American West will want to read Robert Nelson's Public Lands and Private Rights. -- Donald Snow, author of Inside the Environmental Movement: Meeting the Leadership Challenge Provides an intellectual springboard for anyone looking to rethink, retool, or even dismantle the federal land management system. The proposals outlined in the book could provide ammunition for conservative reformers as they turn to public lands. The Yale Law Journal An informative, interesting, and stimulating analysis of the federal lands of the United States. Whether one accepts or rejects his analysis and his conclusions, no one interested in public land management can afford to ignore this book. -- Marion Clawson, Resources for the Future Nelson takes a bold approach in analyzing public lands policy and the failure of scientific management ... he presents a solid list of policy issues and questions that must be put on the table to ensure that the public lands of this nation are protected and used wisely for future generations. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management Professor Nelson develops policy reforms that should make Public Lands and Private Rights must-reading for the entire Congress. Journal of Economic Literature