| The
Department of the Interior (DOI) is the nation’s principal
conservation agency. Our mission is to protect America’s
treasures for future generations, provide access to our
nation’s natural and cultural heritage, offer recreation
opportunities, honor our trust responsibilities to American
Indians and Alaska Natives and our responsibilities to
island communities, conduct scientific research, provide
wise stewardship of energy and mineral resources, foster
sound use of land and water resources, and conserve and
protect fish and wildlife. The work that we do affects the
lives of millions of people; from the family taking a
vacation in one of our national parks to the children
studying in one of our Indian schools.
Interior is a large, decentralized agency with over 78,315
employees and 183,000 volunteers located at
approximately 2,400 operating locations
across the United States, Puerto Rico, U.S. territories, and
freely associated states. We discharge our responsibilities
on a $14 billion total annual budget. DOI
raises more than $9 billion in revenues
collected from energy, mineral, grazing, timber, recreation,
land sales, etc.
Since Congress created the Department of the Interior
in 1849, it has become the steward for:
Land
DOI manages 507 million
acres of surface land, or about one-fifth of the land in the
United States, including:
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262 million acres
managed by the Bureau of Land Management |
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96 million acres
managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service |
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84.4 million
acres managed by the National Park Service |
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8.7
million acres managed by the Bureau of
Reclamation associated with reclamation
projects. |
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55.7
million acres managed by the Bureau
of Indian Affairs |
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Over 180,000
acres of abandoned coal mine sites have
been reclaimed through the Office of
Surface Mining's Abandoned Mine Land
Program.
Water
DOI has responsibility
for managing a variety of water and
underwater resources. The Bureau
of Reclamation manages 476
dams and 348 reservoirs
that deliver irrigation water to one of
every five western farmers and provide
water for 31 million
people. The Minerals Management Service
has jurisdiction over approximately 1.76
billion acres of the Outer Continental
Shelf, on which it manages about 7,300
active oil and gas leases on 42
million acres. The U.S. Geological
Survey conducts groundwater and surface
water studies with offices in all 50
states.
Recreation
and Cultural Opportunities
Native
American Lands and Needs
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55.7
million acres of land belong to
Indian tribes and individuals
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The Bureau of
Indian Affairs provides
education services to 47,671
Indian children in 184
schools and dormitories |
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The Bureau manages
relationships with 562
Indian tribes |
U.S. Energy Needs
Energy projects on
federally managed lands and offshore
areas supply about 28
percent of the nation’s energy
production. This includes:
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34.5%
of natural gas |
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34.7%
of oil |
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42%
of coal |
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17%
of hydro power |
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48%
of geothermal |
Scientific
Research
The U.S. Geological
Survey scientists:
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Monitor, analyze,
interpret, and disseminate
information on earthquakes,
volcanoes, and the geology and
topography of the United States. |
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Monitor and assess
water quality, streamflows and
ground water at thousands of
sites across the nation |
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Produce more than 100,000
different maps |
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Estimate world and
United States energy and mineral
supplies |
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Conduct a wide
range of research on biology,
geology, and water to provide
land and resource managers with
the information they need to
make sound decisions, and to
help mitigate the effects of
natural hazards |
Fish and Wildlife
The Department seeks to
work with others to conserve, manage,
protect and enhance fish, wildlife,
plants and their habitats for the
continuing benefit of all Americans. DOI
is responsible for:
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Improving habitats
for migratory birds, certain
marine animals, freshwater and
anadromous fish, as well as
providing public enjoyment of
these resources |
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Protecting 1,823
endangered or threatened
species, 1,265 are U.S. |
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Preventing and
controlling invasive species |
For more information,
please visit DOI
Quick Facts website.
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