Federal land conservation funds threatened ... again

RELEASE: May 16, 2008 – Volume XL, No. 20

If you think the proposed park closings in New Jersey were bad, take a look at what Washington is doing to parks funding! The federal budget proposes massive slashes in funding for land conservation programs. If these cuts are approved by Congress, lands worthy of preservation in New Jersey could be lost forever to development.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund and the Forest Legacy Program are the federal government’s flagship land preservation programs. They invest in America’s parks, forests, wildlife habitat, recreation areas and water protection. Some of our country’s most iconic natural places were preserved through these programs: the Everglades, Appalachian Trail and Valley Forge.

Under the President Bush’s budget proposal, both programs would be slashed by 75 percent! Land and Water Conservation Fund money given to states for park, recreation and open space projects would be completely eliminated. This is a near total reversal of the President’s campaign pledge to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund!

President Bush’s budget also zeroes out funding for the federal Highlands Conservation Act, which was signed into law in 2004 and authorizes $100 million over 10 years to preserve land in the Highlands of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

It’s certainly not a matter of declining demand. The U.S. Forest Service, for example, has received funding requests for 82 Forest Legacy projects in 41 states and three territories. The proposed projects total almost $200 million and would protect 400,000 acres.

And it’s not a matter of not having enough money. More than $900 million per year in Land and Water Conservation Fund spending was authorized by Congress in 1987. The funding comes primarily from offshore oil and gas drilling leases. These royalties bring in billions per year, but Congress has diverted a substantial portion these non-taxpayer dollars for other uses.

If allowed to stand, these proposed land preservation funding cuts would represent a huge setback for New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the nation. The Garden State’s five outstanding national wildlife refuges together are seeking $9.1 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund to add 352 acres to the refuge system. This is a sound investment, as wildlife refuges have been shown to contribute significantly to local economies.

In New Jersey, the Forest Legacy Program funds preservation of forest lands in the Highlands that protect the drinking water supply for over 5.4 million residents. New Jersey is seeking $7 million for critical lands in the Passaic, Pequannock and Ramapo River watersheds. The state is also asking for $2.5 million in Highlands Conservation Act funding to preserve land in the Wyanokie and Farny Highlands to protect its most threatened water supply, the Wanaque Reservoir, as well as $2.5 million to close a critical conservation gap by preserving “Camp Yaw Paw” in the Ramapo Mountains.

If Congress does not restore these funds, conservation efforts across the nation will take a giant step backward. We must encourage our Senators and Representatives in Congress to advocate strongly for these land conservation funding programs, and ensure that funding from offshore oil and gas leases is spent for its original purpose – saving land.

For more information about the proposed federal land conservation cuts, go to http://www.outdoors.org/conservation/landprotection/index.cfm. And I hope you’ll contact me at info@njconservation.org, or visit NJCF’s website at www.njconservation.org, for more information about conserving New Jersey’s precious land and natural resources.

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