BOISE, Idaho — Hundreds of concerned citizens gathered at the Idaho Capitol on Saturday to celebrate and defend public lands amid growing concerns over potential privatization efforts.

“We’re here today to celebrate and defend our National Public Lands,” said Alexis Pickering, Executive Director for Conservation Voters for Idaho. “We know that there’s been talks at the federal government, and special interests are eyeing our public lands as a cash cow and to sell them off.”

Attendees came from across the state, including distant communities like Driggs and Moscow, demonstrating the widespread concern about public land access.

Pickering expressed alarm about recent developments.

She cited the Wilks brothers as an example of privatization concerns.

“Privatization, we’ve already seen the impacts of what privatization has done. Most folks know about the Texas billionaire brothers, the Wilks brothers. They purchased a ton of land in Valley County in that neck of the woods, and they essentially shut off, you know, decades, centuries of access to pristine hunting grounds and recreational access,” Pickering said.

Conservationists argue that a combination of environmental challenges, resource constraints, and political agendas creates a perfect storm that puts the future of public lands at greater risk than ever before.

According to Pickering, the consequences could be far-reaching for average citizens,

“That’s what we can expect with privatization,” she said. “Is folks no longer allowing regular Idahoans like you or me to recreate, to pick huckleberries, to hunt or fish. That would no longer be an option for a majority of the state.”

Organizers are urging citizens to contact their federal representatives to support Montana Representative Ryan Zinke’s “Public Lands in Public Hands Act,” which would protect federal lands from being transferred to state ownership.

“I think we’ll just have to get bigger and louder and stronger,” Pickering said. “We’ll have to – this is not the first time they’ve come for our public lands, and we’ve beat it back before.”

The rally included multiple conservation organizations working together, reflecting what Pickering described as “a huge intrinsic value and a uniting force amongst Idahoans of all types.”