Use of public land requires balancing act.

• Position: YOUR LIFE - Brief article

Carbon sequestration and other ecosystem services provided by approximately 650,000,000 acres of Federal public land in the U.S. could contribute significantly to long-term efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and combat global warming. However, adding new climate objectives to these lands' already lengthy list of federally mandated activities and objectives will require a careful balancing act, indicates Christopher Galik, research coordinator at Duke University's Climate Change Policy Partnership, Durham, N.C.

"Lawmakers and land managers who want to tap into the vest climate-mitigation potential of public lands in general, and the nearly 650,000,000 acres of Federal lands in particular, need to make sure that any new climate objectives mesh with other mandated uses, including endangered species preservation, recreation, soil and water conservation, grazing, energy and other natural resource extraction, and timber harvesting. New activities must be merged with existing institutional and legal frameworks controlling...