Aldo Leopold, the visionary 20th century conservationist, eloquently
imagined a Nation of citizen stewards. Environmental progress ultimately
resides in the efforts of all of us to apply a caring hand to the
landscape. It resides in our actions in our own backyards, at our places
of work, on our farms and ranches, and in our communities.
To foster a Nation of citizen stewards, Secretary Norton is advancing
a 4 C's philosophy - conservation through communication, consultation
and cooperation. The Department is expanding the tools in the
conservation "toolbox" available to private land owners and
federal land mangers to enhance and achieve conservation. These tools
include over $500 million in conservation grants, including $113 million
proposed in FY 04 for the Cooperative Conservation Initiative (CCI),
which includes funds for our highly successful Partners for Fish and
Wildlife Program, our Coastal Program, and cooperative conservation
challenge cost-share grants. Our Private Stewardship Grant program and
Landowner Incentive Program, founded on initiatives envisioned by
President Bush when he was Governor of Texas, provide assistance to
private land owners in their voluntary efforts to protect threatened,
imperiled and endangered species.
These efforts are producing real results across the country. In
summer 2003, the Department awarded $12.9 million in cooperative
conservation challenge cost-share grants to land managers in Bureau of
Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park
Service. The grants will fund 256 projects-ranging from invasive species
eradication to water supply for big game elk to habitat restoration-in
40 states involving 749 partners, leveraging $24 million in partnered
dollars.
Examples of cooperative conservation at work:
- Dozens of farmers initiated a project to reclaim 100 miles of
streams and riparian areas along Buffalo Creek in Pennsylvania.
These farmers engage in conservation as willing partners and
participants, not as coerced parties responding to Washington
mandates.
- Maine's Ducktrap River is being restored by over two-dozen
federal, state, local and private partners.
We are also expanding the use of cooperative conservation tools such as
conservation banking, stewardship contracting, enhanced use of Safe
Harbor agreements under the Endangered Species Act, and use of
consensus-based management for public lands.
Through cooperative conservation, we can achieve healthy lands,
thriving communities and dynamic economies.
For more Information Visit:
Cooperative Conservation Grant Projects and Funding for 2004
DOI
Cooperative Conservation Grants
A State-By-State Summary of Cooperative Conservation Cost Share Grants - Projects and Funding for 2003
Cooperative
Conservation - FY 2004 Budget Priorities
Natural
Resource Assistance Grants
Promoting
Partnerships for Conservation - The Landowner Incentive Program
Sustaining
Landscapes and Habitat for Wildlife through Cooperative Conservation
U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service: Partners for Fish & Wildlife Program
U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service: Private Stewardship Grants Program
News Releases for Cooperative Conservation
Initiative
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