Badlands Conservation Alliance (BCA) is a North Dakota-based nonprofit dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the Badlands and rolling prairie ecosystems of western North Dakota. Founded in 1999, BCA began as a grassroots response to oil and gas development projects in North Dakota’s Little Missouri National Grassland, where the group’s advocacy efforts helped protect 40,000 acres of roadless areas from mining, drilling, and other extractive industries. Since then, BCA has remained committed to its mission of advocating for the responsible stewardship of public lands—both state and federal—so they remain ecologically intact for current and future generations. Serving the bison, sage grouse, and people of the Badlands, BCA engages in environmental advocacy, public education, and community organizing. “We provide an independent voice for conservation-minded North Dakotans and others who appreciate this unique Great Plains landscape,” writes Shannon Straight, BCA’s executive director.
Sunrise in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Photo: U.S. National Park Service
With one full-time staff member and one part-time employee, BCA is a grassroots group working to preserve the Badlands. In 2001, BCA began advocating for the preservation of the historic viewshed of Theodore Roosevelt’s Elkhorn Ranch. These efforts proved successful when, in 2012, the area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since 2002, BCA has been advocating for Wild and Scenic protection for the Little Missouri River and for strengthening the Little Missouri State Scenic River Act. BCA has also defended air quality in the Badlands from industrial threats, partnering with the National Parks Conservation Association in 2022 to submit public comments opposing North Dakota’s Regional Haze State Implementation Plan, which would have undermined protections under the Clean Air Act. BCA is currently collaborating with several state, federal, and Tribal agencies to recruit AmeriCorps members and establish the Badlands Conservation Corps (BCC), the first Conservation Corps based in North Dakota.
The Little Missouri River flows through North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Photo: U.S. National Park Service