WASHINGTON – It’s been a huge month for American outdoorsmen and women in terms of Congressional action. Following a win in the U.S. Senate with the passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, 73-25, the House of Representatives passed its sportsman-friendly legislation: The Recovering America’s Wildlife Act, 233-188.
While not as popular as the GAOA – the RAWA is part of a large, Democrat infrastructure spending bill known as the Moving Forward Act – it still has major approval from outdoor organizations such as the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation and Trout Unlimited. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) will provide $1.4 billion annually for five years to states, tribes and territories to “catalyze proactive, on-the-ground, collaborative efforts to restore essential habitat and implement key conservation strategies, as described in each state’s Wildlife Action Plan,” according to the National Wildlife Federation. Further, according to a 2018 report “Reversing America’s Wildlife Crisis: Securing the Future of Our Fish and Wildlife,” one-third of wildlife in the United States is at risk of extinction. To help species already listed under the ESA, 10% of the resources would be used to recover them.
Each state’s wildlife action plans differ, but one thing is certain: Should this bill pass, not only will the nation’s roads, airports, bridges and other critical infrastructure receive much-needed help, so won’t natural infrastructure. Projects likely to benefit in West Virginia include ruffed grouse habitat restoration as well as boosting native brook trout fisheries. Monies could also go toward protecting smaller members of the state ecosystem, such as threatened darters due to sediment infiltration and migratory songbirds that lost critical habitat from mountaintop mining pre-2010.
“Clean water and healthy waterways are critical elements of the Nation’s infrastructure system,” said Chris Wood, president and CEO of Trout Unlimited. “They are rightly recognized as such by the ‘Moving Forward Act.’ Today, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, we can see that more clearly than ever before. As individuals, we need clean water to wash our hands and to drink. As communities, we need healthy waterways to sustain our farms, fisheries, our recreation, and our economies. Improving water infrastructure should be nonpartisan work, and we are pleased to see this legislation contains several bills which have bipartisan, bicameral support. There is much to praise here today and as anglers, we give our thanks.”
According to a release by TU, the bill outlines several priorities for clean water and trout and salmon fisheries such as: Increased funding for conservation priorities like the Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes; smarter drought policy in the West; healthier public lands with the Public Lands Renewable Energy Development Act and the U.S. Forest Service Legacy Roads and Trails program; an extension of funding for work to clean up abandoned mines and provisions to make the process simpler for Good Samaritan groups who take on the work and funding for disaster preparedness for events like flood and wildfire.
The bill will now be considered in the Senate and will likely see a vote later this month following the July recess.
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