U.S. Department of the Interior
Talk of creating an interior department for the United States began in 1789, but the department was not actually formed until 1849. When the department was first created, it had a broad range of concerns. It oversaw the construction of the national capital's water system, the colonization of freed slaves in Haiti, exploration of the West, running the District of Columbia jail, regulation of territorial governments, management of hospitals and universities, management of public parks, and the basic responsibilities for Indians, public lands, patents, and pensions. Nowadays, the U.S. Department of the Interior is the nation's main conservation agency.
Fact
The mission statement of the U.S. Department of the Interior 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 agency has more than 70,600 employees and 200,000 volunteers located at approximately 2,400 operating locations across the United States, Puerto Rico, and U.S. territories.
Land
The interior department manages 504 million acres of surface land. This comprises about one-fifth of the land in the United States, with a breakdown as follows:
261.9 million acres which are managed by the Bureau of Land Management
96 million acres managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service
84.4 million acres managed by the National Park Service
8.7 million acres managed by the Bureau of Reclamation
55.7 million acres managed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs
More than 190,000 acres of abandoned coal-mining sites have been reclaimed through the Office of Surface Mining's Abandoned Mine Land Program.
Water
The U.S. Department of the Interior also has responsibility for managing numerous water and underwater resources, including 471 dams and 348 reservoirs that provide irrigation water to one out of five farmers and water for more than 31 million people. The Minerals Management Service has jurisdiction over approximately 1.76 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf, on which are more than 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 fifty states.
Recreation and Cultural Opportunities
There are more than 68 million visitors to 3,300 recreational sites provided by the Bureau of Land Management, with a departmental breakdown as follows:
276 million visits to 388 places, including parks, monuments, seashore sites, battlefields, and other cultural and recreational sites provided by National Park Service
39 million visits to 545 wildlife refuges provided by the Fish and Wildlife Service
90 million visits to 308 recreation sites provided by the Bureau of Reclamation
Native American Lands and Needs
The U.S. Department of the Interior oversees 55.7 million acres of land belonging to 562 Indian tribes. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) provides educational services to 47,588 Indian children in 184 schools and dormitories. The BIA serves as a liaison with all of the country's 562 Indian tribes.
U.S. Energy Needs
The U.S. Department of the Interior is in charge of energy projects on the federally managed lands and offshore areas that supply about 30 percent of the nation's energy production, as follows:
34.5 percent of the nation's natural gas
34.7 percent of the nation's oil
43 percent of the nation's coal
17 percent of the nation's hydroelectric power supply
50 percent of the nation's geothermal energy sources
Scientific Research
U.S. Geological Survey scientists monitor, analyze, interpret, and report findings on earthquakes, volcanoes, and other information pertaining to the geology of the United States. They also assess water quality, stream flows, and ground water at thousands of sites across the nation. They produce more than 55,000 different maps and conduct research on biology, geology, and water.
Benefits
The U.S. Department of the Interior has many benefits that you may or may not find in the private sector. As you have been learning throughout this book, government jobs often make up in benefits and security what they lack in salary. You will get ten paid holidays a year, two-and-a-half weeks of both vacation and sick days, family and medical leave as needed, paid jury duty, bereavement leave, and military duty. You can find out all the details about the interior department at the department's Web site, online at
You will get the standard health-care benefits for you and your dependents, including medical, dental, and vision insurance. Some sites even have health-care units on the premises. You can choose from several life insurance policies. The department's retirement program is better than the ever-diminishing benefits on the private sector. There are also telecommuting opportunities, child-care facilities at some locations, relocation assistance (in some cases), an employee assistance program (should you or a family member need counseling), tuition assistance, and even a gym at some locations. And how does free parking and a full-service low-cost cafeteria at most locations sound? Not bad.
