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For Immediate Release
Contact:

Christina DiPasquale
Phone: 202.481.8181
Email: cdipasquale@americanprogress.org

CAP and Sierra Club Unveil Video Series 'Public Lands, Private Profits'

Videos Feature the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Bridger-Teton National Forest

WASHINGTON

Today the Center for American Progress and the Sierra Club released "Public Lands, Private Profits," a series of mini-documentaries featuring the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah, and the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming, and will hold a discussion at 12:30 p.m. ET on the status of American conservation in 2012. This event will be held at the Center for American Progress with Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune, Center for American Progress Chair John Podesta, and former Virginia Congressman Tom Perriello.

"Some places on our public lands are too special to drill and mine," said Christy Goldfuss, Director of CAP's Public Lands Program. "The documentary series released today highlights three controversial projects on public lands that show development is not always in the public interest. Conservation must be part of a balanced energy strategy, and some places on our public lands should be protected and managed for their other values like recreation, hunting and fishing, scenery, and conservation jobs."

The average running time for each video is about six minutes and this three-part video series includes:

  • "A Grand Threat"--A Canadian company uses outdated environmental studies to bring uranium mining back to the Grand Canyon.
  • "Boom or Bust"--As a nearby coal mine threatens the majestic Bryce Canyon National Park, an age-old fight over tourism versus extraction engulfs a small Utah town.
  • "Too Special to Drill"--Natural gas drilling would bring an ignoble end to Wyoming's spectacular Noble Basin and its residents' exceptional way of life.

"For more than a century, America's special places have been saved so that future generations can experience them. Today millions of people enjoy these areas--generating billions for the economy and supporting millions of jobs," said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune. "Balancing land management and continuing to build our country's lands legacy will have long lasting benefits for our communities and our economy."

Watch the videos here.

View the July 11 event "The Status of American Conservation in 2012" streaming live online at 12:30 p.m. ET here.

To speak with CAP experts about the video series or public lands conservation, please contact Christina DiPasquale at 202.481.8181 or cdipasquale@americanprogress.org and please contact Virginia Cramer to speak with Sierra Club experts at 804.519.8449 or virginia.cramer@sierraclub.org. To attend the July 11 event at the Center for American Progress's Washington, D.C., office, please RSVP here.

The Center for American Progress is a think tank dedicated to improving the lives of Americans through ideas and action. We combine bold policy ideas with a modern communications platform to help shape the national debate, expose the hollowness of conservative governing philosophy and challenge the media to cover the issues that truly matter.