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View Full Version : AT Land-Buying Agency gets Budget Slashed



SavageLlama
05-10-2005, 23:27
Environmental Programs Hit with Drastic Cuts
Land Acquisition and Land and Water Conservation cut
by Appalachian Trail News
May 9th, 2005

For the third consecutive spring, the House interior appropriations subcommittee has approved a bill drastically cutting back funds for federal land acquisition in the fiscal year that begins October 1. Its parent committee's chair told it to go 2.2 percent below current funding for Interior Department and other environmental programs, the largest hit for any of the 11 budget areas. The subcommittee this week proposed $43 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), compared to $132 million requested by the Bush administration and the $255 million appropriated for the current fiscal year. The House committee last year proposed only $50 million, having failed in 2003 to limit it to $25 million. The LWCF—the primary source of funds to buy strips of surrounding land to protect the Appalachian Trail since 1978—was created in 1964 with an authorized (but never appropriated) level of $900 million a year. Although the subcommittee has eight Trail-state members, including Chairman Charles H. Taylor of North Carolina, ATC and other supporters of the LWCF are looking to the Senate Appropriations Committee to again partly salvage the situation later in the year.

See the Appalachian Trail Corridor Countdown for an overview of miles and acres left to acquire, by state.

The National Park Service recently completed the New Hampshire part of its A.T.-protection program, but still has to acquire 49 tracts to buffer 6.2 miles of the footpath in other states, primarily Pennsylvania and Maryland; those funds were allocated in 1998. The USDA Forest Service, on the other hand, needs new LWCF or special appropriations to cover the 94 tracts on its list of lands needed to fully surround the A.T. in Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia. In addition, the agencies had proposed funding projects in Maine, Connecticut, and Georgia that are either adjacent to the Trail corridor or would protect lands the hiker would easily see from the A.T., descriptions of which are available from The Wilderness Society. More background about the Land and Water Conservation Fund and budgets is available from the American Hiking Society.

Rocks 'n Roots
05-11-2005, 00:43
Republicans are good for the environment...

Tha Wookie
05-11-2005, 12:38
Republicans are good for the environment...
At least they're compostable... unless all that mercury gets out.

Jack Tarlin
05-11-2005, 12:41
Rocks, Republicans like Teddy Roosevelt were responsible for the formation of the National Park Service, of which the A.T. is a part. No Republican effort, no Park Service. No Park Service, no National Scenic Trail System. In other words, no official protection for the A.T.

You're an idiot.

MOWGLI
05-11-2005, 12:58
For more information about the L&WCF, and how you can help with this important government program, please visit the following site;

http://www.americanhiking.org/policy/current/lwcf.html

FYI, this program is funded by fees from offshore oil drilling.

yogi clyde
05-11-2005, 14:13
One environmentally friendly Republican, 100 years ago, is no excuse for the current Republican's horrible record concerning environmental protection.

MOWGLI
05-11-2005, 14:20
Yogi & Llama:

Use that energy to write to Schumer, Clinton, and Pataki. And also write a letter to your Congressman. Griping doesn't do any good. Action speaks louder than words.

Thanks in advance for your action.

PS: We've had worse Governors on conservation issues than Pataki. He could be a real help with restoring stateside funding for the L&WF. He certainly has the Bush Administrations ear.

Tha Wookie
05-11-2005, 14:46
Yogi:

Use that energy to write to Schumer, Clinton, and Pataki. And also write a letter to your Congressman. Griping doesn't do any good. Action speaks louder than words.

Thanks in advance for your action.
Yes, but Yogi's comment does make a point in this thread about how pointless it is to hide behind one of the few exceptions in the history (and I mean HISTORY) of the Republican party's attack on natural resources.

Yogi's comment also may influence others to comment and discuss the ALL-OUT-WAR that is being waged on our land, the wildlife, and the ecological functions that provide us life-support systems. Like the human native americans, the plants and animal native americans are being poisoned, diseased, and annihalated.

First for freedom. Then for land and power. Then for coal. Then for gold. Then for uranium. Then for oil. Letters to crooked congressmen stopped none of this.

I do respect and agree with your suggestions, Jeff, but ANY energy that is defending this native land from further degredation or breaking apart the weak rationalization that supports or excuses such events is admirable and should be commended.

So should your suggestion, to take formal action. We simply must use every tool at our disposal sparing violent confrontation.

The white house, congress, and the courts are all aligned against the environment.

I think that means it is now up to the people.