Washington, DC -- The Teaming With Wildlife Coalition and the
Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies today lauded Senators James Risch (R-ID)
and Mary Landrieu (D-LA), and Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-MN) and
Congressman Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE) for their leadership in championing legislation
that supports on-the-ground conservation to prevent fish and wildlife from
becoming endangered.
The
Congressional Awards presentation culminated the Teaming With Wildlife
Coalition’s annual, two-day advocacy Fly-In on Capitol Hill to raise awareness
of the State and Tribal Wildlife Grants Program, the only federal program
providing funding to states and their partners to conserve the more than 12,000
species that are at risk of landing on the endangered species list.
“I
recognize that I am receiving this award because of hardworking Idahoans who
work to maximize every dollar of the state wildlife grant funding I’ve worked
to secure and to keep species off of the endangered species list,” said Senator
Risch. [View Senator Risch's full acceptance speech]
“I’m very gratified by your recognition of me for, hopefully,
what is our good contribution to your work to educate, promote and protect that
which is wholesome, natural and good for the well-being of our country,” said
Congressman Fortenberry.
I’m very, very grateful to what you all are doing to be good
stewards of the land and water and to protect our wildlife so that we can
enjoy, truly enjoy, the abundance of this wonderful gift that we have in our
country,” said Congressman Fortenberry.
The State and Tribal Wildlife Grants Program provides each state
and territory with approximately $1 million annually to develop and implement
their congressionally mandated State Wildlife Action Plans. The Plans assess
the health of each state’s wildlife and habitats; identify the problems they
face; and outline the actions needed to conserve them over the long term.
“Whether it
is management of sage grouse and lesser prairie chickens in the West or gopher
tortoises and declining bat populations in the East, pro-active conservation
programs are more effective and less costly than an ‘emergency room’ approach,”
said Dan Forster, director of the Georgia Wildlife
Resources Division and 2013-2014 president of the Association of Fish &
Wildlife Agencies. “The State and Tribal Wildlife Grants program is our
best prescription for preventative care.”
However, since 2010, funding for the State and Tribal Wildlife
Grants Program has been cut by more than 35 percent. In addition, further cuts
to program lead to increased federal ESA listings and threaten the associated
jobs and local economies tied the $45 billion wildlife recreation industry.
In addition to recognizing Members of Congress for their support
of the State and Tribal Wildlife Grants Program, the Teaming With Coalition’s
Steering Committee presented two awards to Coalition members.
The
Virginia Conservation Network, an affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation
(NWF), received the Teaming With Wildlife Member Achievement Award for
outstanding achievement in supporting funding for state wildlife diversity
conservation.
The
Network has worked in partnership with the Virginia Department of Game and
Inland Fisheries and NWF’s Mid-Atlantic office over the past five years. Accomplishments
include developing a strategy for safeguarding species of greatest conservation
need from the effects of climate change by co-hosting two statewide workshops;
and helping to grow the Virginia Teaming With Wildlife coalition by 60 members
to reach a total of 188.
The
Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) and the Indiana University of Pennsylvania
(IUP) Research Institute received the State Wildlife Action Plan Partnership
Award for outstanding achievement in implementing that state’s wildlife
action plan.
IUP
researchers are among the Commission’s most valuable partners as a result of
the Institute’s understanding of the Pennsylvania Wildlife Action Plan coupled
with experience finding and implementing solutions to the state’s conservation
needs.
Joint
efforts implemented by PGC and IUP include preparing and/or treating
approximately 18,200 acres to create young forest habitat for golden-winged
warblers since 2011; increasing monitoring of bat populations; surveying
hibernacula for evidence of White Nose Syndrome; and researching new techniques
to monitor bat populations and combat infections of hibernating bats.
Approximately
100 attendees participated in the annual Teaming With Wildlife Fly-in held February
25-26 in Washington, DC. Fly-in advocates held meetings with Members and staff
in more than 150 congressional offices.
For more information about Teaming With Wildlife and State
Wildlife Action Plans, go to www.teaming.com.
# # #
Teaming With Wildlife, a national coalition of more than 6,400
conservation organizations and nature-based businesses—including state fish and
wildlife agencies, wildlife biologists, hunters and anglers, birdwatchers,
hikers and other conservationists—is working to prevent wildlife from becoming
endangered by supporting increased state, federal and private funding for
wildlife conservation.
Found on the web at www.teaming.com or follow updates on Teaming with
Wildlife's Facebook page at
facebook.com/Teaming-with-Wildlife and on Twitter @teamingwildlife.
