Public lands in South Dakota
12 units whose boundary reaches South Dakota. They are 6 national wildlife refuges, 2 wilderness areas and 4 national forests and grasslands, largest first within each type.
Acreage in South Dakota
- National wildlife refuges
- 43,865 acres
- Wilderness areas
- 77,678 acres
- National forests and grasslands
- 3,098,581 acres
Each figure is the acreage inside South Dakota for one kind of unit, summed over the units listed below. A unit that crosses into another state counts only the part of its boundary that lies in South Dakota. Wilderness often lies inside one of the other kinds, so the figures overlap and should not be added together.
National wildlife refuges
Wilderness areas
National forests and grasslands
Boundaries come from the agencies’ own layers. A unit is listed in every state or territory its boundary reaches. Data refreshed November 1, 2026.