TRCP Heralds Habitat Help in Stimulus Bill

February 14, 2009

News for Immediate Release

Contact: Tom Trotter, ttrotter@trcp.org, 202-654-4626

TRCP Heralds Habitat Help in Stimulus Bill

Conservationists appreciate efforts to improve environment and economy

WASHINGTON – The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership applauded the significant dual investment in our nation’s economy and environment provided by the stimulus package passed by Congress today.

The national coalition of hunting, angling and conservation organizations pointed to much-needed bursts of funding for fish passage improvements and abandoned mine reclamation nationwide, along with habitat restoration in the Mississippi River corridor, as prime examples of the innovative ways that congressional leaders found to simultaneously improve our nation’s natural resources and economy.

“Congress and the administration are keying in on the reality that many investments in quality fish and wildlife resources also are investments in a quality economy,” said TRCP President and CEO George Cooper. “Several of our partner organizations, including Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, the Izaak Walton League of America, The Nature Conservancy and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, deserve credit for reaching out to our leaders to help grow this understanding.”

Thousands of jobs immediately will follow from the investments in fish and wildlife habitat improvement contained in the stimulus package, a factor that compelled the ranks of union sportsmen to align behind the bill. Earlier this month, the Building and Construction Trades Department of the AFL-CIO joined the TRCP in a joint letter calling on Congress to include funding for shovel-ready projects that could give a boost to the American landscape and economy. Several of those measures were included in the final bill passed by Congress today.

Highlights of the stimulus packagefor fish and wildlife include:

$375 million for restoration of the Mississippi River and its tributaries, the nation’s largest recreational fishery.

$280 million for the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service for refuge operations and maintenance and $165 million for resource management.

$230 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s operations, research and facilities.

$500 million for USDA Forest Service wildland fire management efforts.

A $27.5 billion investment in highway infrastructure includes set asides for park roads, parkways, forest highways and refuge roads.

$290 million for the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s watershed and flood prevention operations.

$125 million for the Bureau of Land Management for projects including abandoned mine and well site remediation, road and trail maintenance, watershed improvement and high-priority habitat restoration.

“The stimulus package hopefully will be the first of many times when our leaders simultaneously improve the vitality of our natural and economic resources,” said TRCP senior vice president Tom Franklin. “There are a host of other similar projects standing ready for our leaders to embrace, and the community of conservationists is standing behind them.”

Inspired by the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, the TRCP is a coalition of organizations and grassroots partners working together to preserve the traditions of hunting and fishing.

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