Wildlife recovery act providing $14.6M for SD should be passed by Senate: Brad Johnson
The South Dakota Department of Game Fish and Parks would gain some $14.6 million annually if the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act passes the U.S. Senate later this month.
The legislation is one of a few bills that has bipartisan support, and negotiators feel confident it will become law by September.
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The goal is to prevent at-risk wildlife from becoming endangered species threatened with extinction. It also would help reverse the decline of bees and other pollinators that are important to the agricultural industry.
It would benefit aquatic species by helping improve water quality, while increasing opportunities for fishing and boating.
Habitat restoration also would be enhanced.
The legislation would invest about $1.3 billion annually with another $97 million targeted for tribal nations.
Originally, the legislation was proposed to be funded by earmarking unbudgeted money generated from civil or criminal penalties generated by violations of environmental and national resources laws.
But this week, negotiators have developed a permanent funding source that seems to enjoy support among both Republican and Democrat senators, a National Wildlife Federation spokesman said. Details, though, were not available.
The legislation has support among more than 60 tribes and 1,500 organizations representing state fish and wildlife agencies, sportsmen and women, conservation groups, and industry associations and businesses. The bill was voted out of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works in April and awaits consideration on the Senate floor.
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It passed the House of Representatives on June 14 on a 231-190 vote with 16 Republicans voting yes. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., voted no, much to the dismay of the South Dakota Wildlife Federation, the state’s largest organization of sportsmen and women.
In the Senate, the bill has 40 co-sponsors, including 16 Republicans. U.S. Sens. Mike Rounds and John Thune of South Dakota are not among the sponsors and neither has revealed how he might vote.
The legislation is important because a 2018 study by the National Wildlife Federation, the American Fisheries Society, and The Wildlife Society estimated that one-third of all fish and wildlife species in the U.S. are at an increased risk of extinction.
According to the South Dakota Wildlife Federation, the GFP “has identified 104 species that need conservation assistance.”
The $14.6 million allocated to GFP annually would be matched with $4.9 million in eligible funds or other sources, such as contribution of time, labor and other services, according to information on GFP website. The money would go to “habitat restoration, outreach, species reintroductions, research and more.”
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If passed, each state would create a State Wildlife Action Plan. South Dakota already has a plan that was developed in 2014. GFP said activities in the new plan might include conservation and management of state and private lands, conducting research, and restoration and management to understand and reverse population declines.
It also would allow new conservation strategies to be developed, as well as conservation education programs and projects.
Attention would be given to advancing “wildlife-associated recreation projects to meet the demand for outdoor activities, such as hunting, fishing, wildlife observation and photography, wildlife viewing areas or structures that facilitate this activity and water trails and access.”
The act would also would help the state identify the species in most need of conservation efforts as well as help fight invasive species and diseases. Attention would be given to helping threatened or endangered species recover.
The money is needed, according to GFP, because “state wildlife agencies have traditionally funded their work with hunting and fishing license revenues and companion federal match sources under the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program. Only bird, mammal and sport fish work are eligible for these match funds, leaving behind hundreds or even thousands of other species, such as reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and non-game species.”
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The agency noted that the number of hunters, trappers and anglers has declined, making it “time that other users and beneficiaries of wildlife and habitat stewardship help meet this need.”
As GFP accurately states, “the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act is a potential game changer for state and tribal wildlife agencies.”
If ever there was legislation our two U.S. senators should support, it is this law.
Brad Johnson is a Watertown journalist and businessman. He also is a SD Wildlife Federation Board member and South Dakota’s delegate to the National Wildlife Federation.
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Recovering America’s Wildlife Act should be passed by U.S. Senate
