Cumberland Island Land Exchange Proposal Opposition

Wild Cumberland opposes what the National Park Service has most recently proposed for the Cumberland Island Land Exchange.

The agency has been negotiating deals with select private property owners at Cumberland Island  —  costing millions of dollars — without any public input or involvement for at least the last five years:

• In September, the agency released a 9-page concept reprivatizing public lands within the boundary of Cumberland Island National Seashore. 

Previous landowners (many of whom had limited resources) transferred their lands to the agency in order to establish the Seashore. They “bought in” to the vision the NPS espoused — and trusted the agency would fulfill its promises. 

Here are some important things to know:

• The agency has proposed to convey public lands into private ownership — with NO conservation easement assurances. 
• Several of the parcels proposed for private ownership are owned by the federal government, but have been inaccessible to the public for the last 50 years. Others are existing homesites that have already converted to federal ownership.
• Camden County can still rezone privately-owned properties. Property owners would potentially still be able to subdivide and/or sell these properties. 
• Potential development tracts are adjacent to, or near, designated Potential Wilderness.
• None of the documents presented by the agency indicate any interest in, or adherence to, its 1972 legislative intent. It also does not mention or adhere to the unit’s 1984 General Management Plan, 1994 Land Protection Plan, or 2012 Former Reserved Property Management Plan.
  

The NPS has been negligent in the development and implementation of a Wilderness Management Plan since its authorization (42 years ago). 

• This plan must be completed before any transactions are considered or take place. The need or possibility for any of the proposed exchanges may have been eliminated if a Wilderness Management Plan had been completed in a timely and responsible fashion for Cumberland Island National Seashore. 

Wild Cumberland believes that if we are to respect the Congressional intent of Cumberland Island National Seashore and its Wilderness designation – every parcel of land would have a plan in place to eventually convert to federal ownership, and the island would become an increasingly wilder, more ecologically-valuable resource to Americans. 

Wild Cumberland believes that NO land exchanges are acceptable for this barrier island park unit. This may warrant the agency’s use of condemnation and/or imminent domain (as authorized in 2006 NPS Management Policies, CUIS’ 1984 General Management Plan, and/or CUIS’ 1994 Land Protection Plan). 

• Why isn’t the NPS focused on the expiration of retained rights and returning Cumberland Island National Seashore to a “primitive, undeveloped” condition? 
• How does the proposed land exchange – which increases the number of private residences and potential for future development — align with the intent of Congress or its subsequent Wilderness designation?

The proposed Cumberland Island Land Exchange plan seems to indicate that the NPS, taxpayers, volunteers —  and fee-paying visitors — are merely functioning as interim “caretakers” for residents employing long-term strategies to ensure a permanent presence on the island. 

Remember — the majority owner in Cumberland Island is the American public. We must not allow the private motives of a few individuals to undermine the qualities of, and vision for, Cumberland Island National Seasho

Youtube: Town Hall – What They Aren’t Telling You About The Cumberland Island Land Exchange

Protecting Cumberland Island Timeline

Comments Submitted by SELC on the Cumberland Island Land Exchange

Comments Submitted by Wild Cumberland on the Cumberland Island Land Exchange

Read the comments submitted to the NPS on the Cumberland Island Land Exchange by Wild Cumberland below.

Slide Decks from the Town Halls

June 2026 – Land Exchange Town Hall – Slide Deck

September 2025 – Land Exchange Town Hall – Slide Deck

What We Covered:

• Helpful terms
• Overviews of the 4 individual land exchanges
• The stated purpose of the plan
• What is missing from the documents
• Maps that show the full scope of the proposed land exchange
• How Cumberland Island compares to other national parks in this type of land exchange situation
• Wild Cumberland’s position
• How to comment on the NPS proposal
• and what’s next!
• plus we have a great Q&A session that covers a lot more!

Links to More Information: