Hunter everywhere need to celebrate the appointment of Secretary Zinke to the Department of the Interior. On his first full day in office, Secretary Zinke issued two secretarial orders reversing the Obama’s eleventh hour order to ban all lead ammunition from Public lands and to restrict access to these lands. Secretary Zinke, reversed these orders.
Zinke’s new orders opens up millions of acres of land to hunters and anglers across the west and beyond. Land that carried restricted access in the last administration will be opened to the public to use.
“Outdoor recreation is about both our heritage and our economy,” he said in a statement. “Between hunting, fishing, motorized recreation, camping and more, the industry generates thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic activity.”
Over the past eight years, hunting and recreation enthusiasts have seen trails closed and dramatic decreases in access to public lands across the board, Zinke said. “It worries me to think about hunting and fishing becoming activities for the land-owning elite. This package of secretarial orders will expand access for outdoor enthusiasts and also make sure the community’s voice is heard.”
As a hunter from the east who enjoys traveling to the west to hunt. Public land access often determines where and how I will go. This opens up so much opportunity to hunters all over the country. Moreover, the ban on lead ammunition all but closed all hunting in these areas. Now thanks to the Trump administration and Secretary Zinke, these lands will be more open than in recent memory and the access will garner millions of dollars to the small communities that rely on the sportsmen and women to provide them with their way of life.
