Congress to Slash Funding for Public Lands?
congresswatch | Land
The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) was established by Congress in 1964 to protect America’s public lands, by providing matching grants to states for both outdoor recreation projects and land acquisition for various federal agencies, such as the U.S. Forest Service and Park Service. Since its inception, LWCF money has protected more than 7 million acres of public lands, including habitat for endangered and threatened species and 40,000 public park and recreation areas nationwide.
To sustain the LWCF, Congress must appropriate money annually in the Interior Appropriations bill for critical projects. The last several years have seen a sharp drop in appropriations for the Fund. In fact, the Bush Administration’s fiscal year 2007 budget proposes the lowest funding in well over a decade.
The Forest Legacy Program complements LWCF by helping states conserve privately owned forests from inappropriate development so they can continue to provide clean water and wildlife habitat. According to a recent alert from the Wilderness Society, Funding for Forest Legacy, too, falls far short of need: President Bush has proposed $61.5 million for the program in 2007, yet 43 states have submitted requests for $200 million to fund 91 projects.
To protect critical public lands and wildlife habitat, it’s imperative that Congress provides adequate funding to the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the Forest Legacy Program. To learn more about this issue or to take action, please contact the Wilderness Society: www.wilderness.org.
