United States National Grassland

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United States National Grasslands are protected areas of the United States. National Grasslands are designated by the Secretary of Agriculture and are permanently held by the Department of Agriculture. National Grasslands are authorized by Title III of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act. For administrative purposes, they are essentially identical to U.S. National Forests, except that grasslands are areas primarily consisting of prairie. Like National Forests, National Grasslands may be open for hunting, grazing, mineral extraction, recreation and other uses. Various National Grasslands are typically administered in conjunction with nearby National Forests. The three National Grasslands in North Dakota, together with one in northwestern South Dakota, are administered jointly as the Dakota Prairie Grasslands. All but two of the National Grasslands are on or at the edge of the Great Plains. The remaining three are in southeastern Idaho, California and central Oregon. National Grasslands are generally much smaller than National Forests. Whereas a typical National Forest would be about 1,000,000 acres, a typical Grassland would only be about 100,000 acres. The largest National Grassland, the Little Missouri National Grassland in North Dakota, covers 1,033,271 acres (1,614.5 sq mi, or 4,181.5 km²), which is approximately the median size of a National Forest. As of September 30, 2007, the total acreage of all 20 National Grasslands was 3,843,037 acres (6,004.7 sq mi, or 15,552.2 km²). ^[1]

1 List of National Grasslands
2 List of Prairie Reserves
3 See also
4 References

[edit] List of National Grasslands

Black Kettle National Grassland -- western Oklahoma on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Cibola National Forest
Buffalo Gap National Grassland -- southwestern South Dakota on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Nebraska-McKelvie National Forests.
Butte Valley National Grassland -- northern California, administered as part of Klamath National Forest
Caddo National Grassland -- north Texas in Fannin County, administered with the Lyndon B. Johnson National Grassland
Cedar River National Grassland -- southwestern North Dakota on the Great Plains, administered as part of Dakota Prairie Grasslands.
Cimarron National Grassland -- southwestern Kansas on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Pike-San Isabel National Forests
Comanche National Grassland -- southeastern Colorado on the Great Plains, administered with the Pike-San Isabel National Forests
Crooked River National Grassland -- central Oregon in the Deschutes River valley, administered as part of Deschutes-Ochoco National Forests
Curlew National Grassland -- southeastern Idaho in the Curlew Valley, administered with the Caribou-Targhee National Forest
Grand River National Grassland -- western South Dakota on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Dakota Prairie Grasslands
Fort Pierre National Grassland -- central South Dakota on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Nebraska-McKelvie National Forests
Kiowa National Grassland -- northeastern New Mexico on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Cibola National Forest
Little Missouri National Grassland -- western North Dakota, administered as part of Dakota Prairie Grasslands
Lyndon B. Johnson National Grassland -- north Texas on the Great Plains, administered with the Caddo National Grassland
McClellan Creek National Grassland -- Texas Panhandle on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Cibola National Forest
Oglala National Grassland -- northwestern Nebraska on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Nebraska-McKelvie National Forests
Pawnee National Grassland -- northeastern Colorado on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests
Rita Blanca National Grassland -- northwestern Texas in the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Cibola National Forest
Sheyenne National Grassland -- southeastern North Dakota, administered as part of Dakota Prairie Grasslands.
Thunder Basin National Grassland -- eastern Wyoming on the Great Plains, administered as part of the Routt-Medicine Bow National Forests