Boone and Crockett: Farm Bill a Win for Conservation
Boone and Crockett Club 02.05.14
The Boone and Crockett Club applauds the U.S. Congress for passing a new Farm Bill featuring reformed Conservation and Forestry titles. With broad bipartisan support, the newly approved Farm Bill is a win for conservation in America.
“The successes in conservation and wildlife management we have been able to achieve in America this past century have been anchored by key pieces of legislation, and none have been more valuable than the Farm Bill. Members of the Boone and Crockett Club have a long history of working on past Farm Bills, as well as this most current bill. We are pleased that this new bill targets conservation to key forest, grassland, wetland and other wildlife habitats,” said William (Bill) Demmer, president of the Club.
Along with the necessary spending cuts, the bill still provides certainty to agriculture and improves forest, wetland, grassland, and wildlife programs.
With over 74 percent of the land in the U.S. in private ownership, the Club believes that conservation of private lands is paramount to clean air and water, a thriving and healthy environment and economy.
From a sportsman’s perspective, the most effective conservation provisions of the Farm Bill are the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP). These provisions directly impact wildlife habitat, and therefore healthy upland game birds, waterfowl and big game populations.
“The condition and ability to properly manage our national forests has also been a primary concern of the Club,” said Demmer. “In the new Farm Bill, the Club supported the addition of the Healthy Forest Reserve Program to be a participating program of the Regional Conservation Partnership Program. The Club also successively supported permanently reauthorizing Stewardship Contract Authority, enlarging the reach of the existing Healthy Forests Restoration Act to address insect infestations, and extending to all 50 states the Good Neighbor Authority to delegate certain forest health projects to state foresters.”
