(March 8, 2026) – Following the March 31 announcement that the U.S. Forest Service headquarters will move from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City, Utah, The Conservation Alliance members and Brands for Public Lands participants made the following statement:
As businesses that rely on well-managed, accessible public lands, we expect the U.S. Forest Service to adhere to its legally mandated mission: ‘to achieve quality land management under the sustainable multiple-use management concept to meet the diverse needs of people’. The recent announcement to relocate agency headquarters to Salt Lake City, Utah and close regional offices and research facilities raises concerns about the agency’s ability to properly manage its 193 million acres and maintain decades of research and scientific knowledge needed to support them. Recreation on Forest Service lands currently drives $23.3B in economic output annually but local communities, visitors, businesses, and the outdoor economy stand to suffer if the agency doesn’t receive the funding, resources, and staffing that it needs through this transition. We are committed to working alongside the Department of Agriculture and congressional leaders to provide clarity on the priorities of our community, advocate for robust public engagement, and safeguard the future of Forest Service lands.
Signatories include:
Adventure Labworks
AdventureKEEN Publishing
Alpacka Raft
Altra
B.COLECTIVE
Backbone Media LLC
Bergreen Photography
Big Agnes
Black Diamond Equiment
BOCO Gear
California Outdoor Recreation Partnership
CGPR
Cheeky Fishing
Columbia Sportswear Company
Compose[d]
Duct Tape Then Beer
Eagle Creek
Elkhorn Coffee Co.
Emerger Strategies
FishHound Expeditions
Fjällräven
Flickr
GRAYL
HEST
High Mountain Creative, LLC
Hipcamp, Inc.
JoyBound Adventures
Kahtoola, Inc.
Kelty
MeatEater
Mercantile Commerce
Mountain Hardwear
Mountain Sports Flagstaff
MtnStuff
NEMO Equipment
Oberalp North America
Oboz Footwear
Orvis
Outdoor Eats
Pack Rat Outdoor Center
PACT Outdoors
Patagonia
Point to Point Photography
Puddle Creative
RecPak
REI Co-op
RepYourWater
Roads Rivers and Trails
Royal Treatment Fly Fishing
Sanitas Sales Group
SCARPA North America
Shār Snacks
Shift Advantage
Sierra Business Council
Smartwool
Smeeny Made Wild
SOAR Inflatables
Tailwind Nutrition
The Gear Fix, LLC
The North Face
The Trail Head
Tim’s Naturals
Toad&Co
Topo Athletic
Trail Head River Sports
TripOutside
Two Trails
Verde Brand Communications
Yellow Dog Flyfishing
Yogo
Wilderdog
About The Conservation Alliance
The Conservation Alliance is the leading business coalition for conservation. Uniting companies across industries, perspectives, and geographies, we harness the collective power of our members to protect lands and waters for future generations. Our dual top-down and bottom-up approach pairs corporate advocacy with funding for grassroots action on the ground. Investing in The Conservation Alliance is not only an investment in protecting the resources outdoor businesses depend on—it’s a way to strengthen the outdoor economy and ensure long-term business resilience. Since its founding in 1989, TCA and its members have helped protect over 125 million acres of and nearly 5,000 river miles by advocating for common-sense policies and granting $34.9 million to local groups to improve and protect critical landscapes across the country. With natural places facing a barrage of threats, they welcome all brands that value North American landscapes to join them in leveraging the power of business to drive conservation. For complete information about The Conservation Alliance, visit conservationalliance.com.
Media Contact:
Lilly Zoller
248-302-1553
lilly@conservationalliance.com
