Poll: Voters in 8 Western states oppose Trump cuts to federal public lands agencies
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President Trump's efforts to dismantle agencies that manage public lands and develop wilderness areas are deeply unpopular in the American West, a new poll shows.
Why it matters: The bipartisan Conservation in the West survey, released Wednesday, is the first to measure the region's reaction to the Trump administration's move days earlier to cut thousands of national park, forest service and Bureau of Land Management workers.
The big picture: The overwhelming support for public lands and the agencies that manage them is reflected throughout the Mountain West.
- In the eight states polled, a large majority — including among self-identified MAGA Republicans — oppose funding cuts to federal public land agencies, and prioritize conservation over oil and gas drilling by the widest margin in the poll's 15-year history.
- 87% want career professionals to make decisions about public lands, water and natural resources rather than Trump administration appointees.
What they're saying: Public lands "are an essential part of the fabric of Westerners' lives," said Dave Metz, a Democratic pollster who co-conducted the survey. "This is something that really makes this region of the country unique."
Zoom in: By the highest margins ever, Colorado voters prefer land conservation over oil and gas development.
- This comes as the BLM is considering a December sale of 61 parcels totalling 51,068 acres for oil and gas leases.
By the numbers: 80% of Colorado registered voters oppose slashing funding to federal public lands and environmental agencies, the poll found.
- Reducing the size of national monuments is even more unpopular in Colorado now with 92% opposed, compared to 83% in 2017.
Zoom in: Colorado voters universally reject energy development on public lands. In particular, 67% oppose removing protections for the Thompson Divide on the Western Slope to allow oil and gas drilling.
- 75% want the federal government to take more action to reduce carbon pollution that contributes to climate change.
Between the lines: Democratic and Republican polling firms conducted the survey Jan. 3-17 — before Trump took office — but the president's approach toward public lands was widely known.
- The survey has a plus-or-minus 4.9-percentage-point margin of error at the state level and 2.46-point margin among the eight Mountain West states polled.
- The poll is funded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.