(Idaho Conservation League)

A March ruling by a BLM judge prohibited the mining of 35 small claims along the South Fork Payette River. This marks a growing trend favoring preservation of public lands for recreational use over mining operations. Adam Sowards is a professor of environmental sciences at the University of Idaho and he authors a column for High Country News called Reckoning With History. Sowards joins Idaho Matters to discuss addresses this shift and why it may continue into the future.