Return sought for program that assisted conservation projects

Proponents of the Land and Water Conservation Fund are once again urging federal lawmakers to reauthorize the public lands program along with dedicated funding.

A group of more than 200 hunting, fishing and wildlife conservation groups and businesses from 33 states last week sent a letter to Congress emphasizing the history of the program conserving habitat and expanding public access to land. The fund has provided funding for numerous projects locally and in Montana.

“As hunting, fishing, and wildlife conservation-based organizations and businesses that represent the interests of America’s 40 million hunters and anglers, we are concerned that this expiration could seriously hamper future efforts to conserve valuable habitats and expand public access to America’s public lands,” the letter says.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund on Sept. 30 expired after Congress failed to reauthorize the program that directed a portion of federal revenues from offshore oil and gas leasing to fund grants that went to local, state and federal projects that benefit conservation and outdoor recreation.

The program has provided major funds to conservation projects around Whitefish in recent years, protecting critical habitat and providing continued public access for outdoor recreation. The LWCF played a key role in securing funding for the recently completed Whitefish Lake Watershed Project, a 13,400-acre conservation easement northwest of Whitefish Lake. The Haskill Basin conservation easement finalized in 2016 also relied on LWCF funding to ultimately preserve about 3,000 acres of forestland north of town including providing protection for the city of Whitefish’s source for drinking water. The fund also provided funding for the Trumbull Creek conservation easement for about 7,000 acres north of Columbia Falls.

Mayor John Muhlfeld points out that the Land and Water Conservation Fund has silently been behind conservation success stories in and around Whitefish.

“From Haskill Basin and Trumbull Creek, to the north end of Whitefish Lake, our communities are all the better because of the access and investments in public lands supported by this important funding mechanism,” he said. “Without the support of LWCF, the Haskill Basin Conservation Easement project would have failed to close, placing at risk our city’s water supply from new development.”

Following recent midterm elections, the letter asks lawmakers to reinstate the program before the current session of Congress ends on Jan. 3, 2019.

“Despite the program’s decades-long and proven record of success, its expired authorization puts the future of public access and habitat conservation at risk,” the letter says.

Several Montana groups signed onto the letter, including the Montana Council of Trout Unlimited.

Lifelong Whitefish resident Chris Schustrom is the chair of the state council of Montana Trout Unlimited. He notes that half of the fishing access sites in Montana have received LWCF funding for purchase, lease or maintenance, meaning that those who float the state’s waters more than likely have benefited from the fund.

“LWCF has also been critical to many projects that protect important wild and native fish habitat,” he said.

He points to two recent projects in the state with the Tenderfoot Creek acquisition in the Smith River watershed providing protection and walk-in access to many miles of the tributary and Trout Unlimited’s support for acquisition along the Falls Creek tributary of the Dearborn River, which would use LWCF money to protect tributary habitat and provide new public access to the mainstem Dearborn River.

“For me personally, LWCF has been, and will hopefully be in the future, essential to providing access to the outdoors for recreating, fishing and hunting, all traditional pursuits that are important to Montanans, like me,” he said.

Schustrom says it should be an “immediate priority” for U.S. Senators Jon Tester, Steve Daines, Rep. Greg Gianforte and Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke to champion permanent reauthorization and fully fund the program.

Since its inception in 1964, $18.4 billion has been appropriated through the program to federal land acquisition, state grants and other purposes. The fund does not use taxpayer dollars.

Montana has received about $597 million in the last five decades, according to the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition. The Outdoor Industry Association found that consumers spend $7.1 million recreating in Montana, which supports 71,000 jobs across the state resulting in $2.2 billion in wages and salaries.

Whitefish Attorney Diane Conradi says the fund kick-started investments in recreation in the state producing $286 million annually in state and local tax revenue. Conradi advises communities seeking quality outdoor recreation access as founder of Montana Access Project and sees the fund not as spending, but as an investment.

“Just looking at outdoor recreation alone, the return on investment is immense,” she said. “When you combine those numbers with the cost savings of keeping water clean versus cleaning polluted water, the economic boost from attracting good paying jobs and the health care cost reductions for healthy communities, the numbers skyrocket.”

She said that access to frontcountry recreation close to town is also key as trails and public access 10 to 15 minutes from the workplace is considered by high tech leaders looking to create high paying jobs an essential competitive advantage in attracting workers.

Conradi also points out that the program’s State Side funding that provides grants for acquisition and development of public recreation areas and facilities has declined regularly over the last 20 years

“But to really make it work for places like Whitefish and other communities across the state who need quality outdoor access close to home, Congress must increase and appropriate the LWCF State Side funding,” she said. “Yes, we need to protect land but we also need State Side funds which provide matching grants to state and local governments for public parks, trails and other outdoor recreation facilities.”

The Montana groups that signed the letter were the Big Sky Upland Bird Association, Gallatin Wildlife Association, Laurel Rod and Gun Club, Libby Rod and Gun Club, Hellgate Hunters and Anglers, Montana Bowhunters Association, Montana Chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Montana Council of Trout Unlimited, Montana Sportsmen Alliance, Montana Wild Sheep Foundation, Montana Wildlife Federation, Public Land/Water Access Association, Ravalli County Fish and Wildlife Association and Yellowstone Valley Wildlife.

Montana’s Congressional delegation in the past have all stated their support of the LWCF.