2014 Legislative Priorities for America`s Wildlife

Upper Mississippi River NWFR, MN | Ted Steinke
National Wildlife Refuge Association
2014 Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife
and the National Wildlife Refuge System
About the National Wildlife Refuge Association
T
he National Wildlife Refuge Association occupies a special niche as the only non-profit
organization focused exclusively on promoting the world’s largest wildlife conservation
network, the National Wildlife Refuge System. Since 1975, the Refuge Association has
worked hand-in-hand with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect, conserve and restore
the ecological integrity of the 150 million-acre Refuge System. This incredible collection of lands
and waters supports 2,170 species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, hosts 46.5 million
visitors each year, and generates $2.4 billion of economic return for America. To accomplish
our mission and raise the stature of the Refuge System, the Association engages thousands of
supporters as diverse as the System itself — they may be members of Refuge Friends groups,
private landowners, hunters and anglers, educators and students, or all of the above, hailing
from all walks of life, urban, rural, suburban, and even international. In addition, the Refuge
Association leads a coalition of 23 diverse organizations called the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge
Enhancement (CARE) and our combined 16 million members urge the U.S. Congress to provide
robust annual funding for the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The National Wildlife Refuge Association is committed to the goals, objectives and strategies
articulated by “Conserving the Future,” the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s vision for the future
of the National Wildlife Refuge System. The Refuge Association’s role as a non-partisan, incentivebased, and transparent organization that works with diverse constituencies in Washington and
across the country positions us well to advance this ambitious agenda.
Board of Directors
Stuart Watson, Chair
Boston, MA
Kathy Woodward, Vice-Chair
Chatham, NJ
William Buchanan, Jr., Treasurer
New York, NY
Robert M. Morgan, Secretary
Lewes, DE
Edith T. Eddy, Palo Alto, CA
Tom Goettel, S. Thomaston, ME
James F. McClelland III, Washington, DC
Greg Mensik, Willows, CA
Executive Staff
Janice Mondavi, St. Helena, CA
Michael Mullins, Captiva, FL
Donal C. O’Brien, Stamford, CT
Simon Perkins, Manchester, VT
Tom Prall, Oro Valley, AZ
David C. Preschlack, Bristol, CT
Larry Ross, Manchester Village, VT
Rebecca Rubin, Fredericksburg, VA
Lynn Scarlett, Arlington, VA
Steve Thompson, Granite Bay, CA
Andrew K. Woolford, Stamford, CT
David Houghton
President
Desiree Sorenson-Groves
Vice-President of Government Affairs
Anne Truslow
Vice-President of Conservation Programs
Christine McGowan
Director of Strategic Communications
Camas NWR, ID | Amy Leist
1001 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 905, Washington, DC 20036 • 202-417-3803 • www.refugeassociation.org
Modoc NWR, CA | Jolly Sienda
Merritt Island NWR, FL | Jack Rogers
Executive Summary
T
he National Wildlife Refuge System encompasses
150 million acres of some of the most
extraordinary places on the planet. From the
rocky headlands of the Maine coast, to powder white
beaches of Puerto Rico, to the heartland prairies of the
Wichita Mountains, to the tundra of the Arctic, to the
turquoise waters of Palmyra Atoll in the Pacific, the
Refuge System is the world’s largest and most diverse
collection of lands and waters managed for fish, wildlife
and their habitats. But the Refuge System is more than
a group of places; it is a strategic venture to conserve
America’s wildlife heritage for future generations.
The American people entrust this important mission,
begun 111 years ago by President Theodore Roosevelt,
to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This trust must
be maintained and the obligations of the responsibility
fulfilled.
The National Wildlife Refuge Association strongly
urges Congress to keep the world’s largest network of
wildlife lands and waters healthy and strong. The priority
actions outlined in this report are essential to ensuring
that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (the Service) and
its National Wildlife Refuge System have the tools needed
to conserve 2,170 species of wildlife for the benefit of all
Americans. With 562 national wildlife refuges and 38
wetland management districts around the country, the
vitality of the Refuge System directly serves the 46.5
million annual visitors who rely on refuges for recreation,
hunting, fishing, bird watching, contemplation and
inspiration. But the System is equally important to
the surrounding local economies that depend on $2.4
billion in annual economic output the Refuge System
provides, and the $33 billion in natural infrastructure
to communities, from water supply and water quality to
flood control and storm protection.
To protect America’s fish and wildlife and the special
places they need to thrive, the Refuge Association asks
the 113th Congress to take these important actions for
FY 2015:
Seney NWR, MI | Kenneth Waller
❶
Fully fund the National Wildlife Refuge System at $900
million annually for operations and maintenance, beginning
with $476.4 million in FY15;
❷
Appropriate $178.3 million in FY15 from the Land and Water
Conservation Fund to acquire conservation easements on
working lands and to purchase in-holdings and vital habitat
to enhance the ecological integrity of the National Wildlife
Refuge System;
❸
Reauthorize the North American Wetlands Conservation Act
at $75 million and appropriate $35 million in FY15;
❹
Reauthorize the Partners for Fish and Wildlife program and
appropriate $75 million in FY15 to assist farmers, ranchers
and timber managers with critical wildlife management actions
on private lands;
❺
Increase appropriations for essential conservation programs
including State Wildlife Grants, the Neotropical Migratory
Bird Conservation Fund, the Multinational Species
Conservation Fund, Coastal Grants, and the Department of
the Interior’s Fire Management Program;
❻
Provide funding for proactive public-private partnerships
to secure wide-ranging species at risk from listing under the
Endangered Species Act, such as greater sage-grouse and
gopher tortoise;
❼
Pass a Transportation Bill that includes $100 million annually
to improve refuge road infrastructure for 46.5 million visitors;
❽
Pass the Fish and Wildlife Service Resource Protection Act,
landmark legislation that allows the National Wildlife Refuge
System to benefit from damage settlements as the National
Park Service does;
❾
Reauthorize the Volunteer and Community Partnership Act to
allow refuges the continued benefit of a volunteer network that
provides 23% of their workforce, thereby leveraging American
taxpayer investment;
❿
Retain the current administrative authority for establishing
new refuges, which follows a rigorous scientific justification,
combined with extensive local input and community support.
National Wildlife Refuge Association
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Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
Hummingbird, Occoquan Bay NWR, VA | Caleb Burgoyne
FY 2015 Priorities
for Protecting America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
ully fund the annual operations and maintenance accounts for the National
❶ FWildlife
Refuge System at $900 million, beginning with $476.4 million in FY 2015
The National Wildlife Refuge System manages 150 million
acres on its annual operations and maintenance budget,
which presently averages less than $3.15 per acre. The Refuge
System cannot fulfill its obligation to the American public, our
wildlife, and 46.5 million annual visitors without increases in
maintenance and operation funds.
National wildlife refuges have a critical conservation mission
and their management requires investments in the staff and tools
to manage wildlife populations, recover endangered species, control
harmful invasive species, adapt management strategies to address
changing climate conditions, monitor and measure the effectiveness
of this work and report back to Congress. At the same time, the
Refuge System provides recreational opportunities for the public,
educates the next generation through youth hunting and fishing
events, and keeps refuge resources and visitors safe through law
enforcement. The investment yields an impressive return, generating
approximately 35,000 jobs and $2.4 billion in economic output
each year. Every dollar appropriated to the Refuge System returns
an average of $4.87 to local economies. And, national wildlife
refuges provide the American public with $33 billion dollars worth
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National Wildlife Refuge Association
of clean water and other environmental benefits such as clean air
and a cool climate.
Refuges also play a critical role in keeping at-risk species such
as greater sage-grouse or gopher tortoise from being listed under
the Endangered Species Act, preventing the need to regulate
private land. In recent years, the Refuge System has undertaken
strategic efforts to conserve iconic landscapes through innovative
collaborative partnerships in expansive landscapes that range
from Kansas, the Dakotas and Montana to Florida’s Northern
Everglades and the Gulf Coast. At the same time, the Refuge
System is making investments in expanding visitor services and
public outreach at our nation’s urban refuges in Minnesota,
Colorado, Nevada, California, Maryland, Rhode Island and
Pennsylvania.
To ensure these benefits are realized, the National Wildlife
Refuge Association requests $476.4 million for the National
Wildlife Refuge System’s operations and maintenance accounts for
FY15. This request is supported by 23 diverse organizations with
16 million members that make up the Cooperative Alliance for
Refuge Enhancement (CARE), chaired by the Refuge Association.
Location | Photo credit
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
the Land and Water Conservation Fund and allocate $178.3 million for the
❷ RU.S.eauthorize
Fish and Wildlife Service
The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is an essential
tool for protecting the integrity of the National Wildlife Refuge
System. Allocated from annual proceeds of oil and gas royalties
for the purpose of mitigating resource extraction with resource
protection, LWCF is the primary source of funding for land and
conservation easement acquisition by federal land agencies.
Increasingly, LWCF is being used to conserve working lands
through the acquisition of conservation easements that secure
conservation protection while leaving the land in private ownership
and on the tax rolls. Conservation easements are powerful tools that
foster public-private partnerships with ranchers and timber owners
to conserve wildlife, habitat and a way of life that is uniquely
American. Innovative landscape-scale initiatives in New England’s
Connecticut River Watershed, the Flint Hills of Kansas, the
Everglades Headwaters, Montana’s Crown of the Continent, and
the Dakota Grasslands have broad community and state support for
the use of conservation easements as a primary conservation tool.
These iconic landscapes remain privately managed, generating tax
income for local communities, securing our nation’s food and fiber,
and balancing resource use and resource protection for wildlife.
In many cases, however, land acquisition is required to
conserve intact and functional natural habitat. The Refuge
System is responsible for safeguarding current and future
populations of a range of species, many of which require very
specific habitat conditions, such as sea turtle nesting grounds or
isolated springs for endemic desert fish. Others require multiple
habitat types for their life cycle. By acquiring critical habitat
areas, the Refuge System enhances the overall integrity of the
system and in some instances links conserved lands to further
strengthen our network of habitat to give wildlife space and
time to respond to changes, whether from climate or changing
land use patterns.
The Refuge Association calls on Congress to reauthorize
LWCF at $900 million per year, and to provide $178.3 million
in FY15 LWCF funding for conservation easements and refuge
in-holdings, including the following:
Northern Everglades, FL | Carlton Ward
National Wildlife Refuge Association
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Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
• Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge &
Conservation Area (Florida)—$10 million for a combination
of conservation easements and fee acquisition. Located
between Orlando and Lake Okeechobee, the ranchlands of
the Northern Everglades are composed of some of the nation’s
largest calf-cow ranch operations, many of which have been in
ranch families for four and five generations. These lands are a
mosaic of dry and wet prairie and wetlands that hold and filter
water in the headwaters of America’s iconic River of Grass,
and play an important role in storing water and recharging
aquifers for 8 million South Floridians. Conservation
easement acquisitions will ensure that large ownerships stay
intact and undeveloped, forming a north-south corridor that
provides habitat for more than 30 threatened and endangered
plants and animals including the Florida grasshopper
sparrow, gopher tortoise, and Florida panther. These lands
simultaneously buffer the strategically important Avon
Park Air Force Range, a key training ground for American
fighter pilots. Fee acquisitions to the refuge will provide
public access, including hunting and fishing opportunities
managed in partnership with the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Conservation Commission. This project is supported by the
Northern Everglades Alliance — a rancher-led organization
that represents 980,000 acres of prime ranchlands, and the
Sportsmen’s Trust Group;
Bear River
Watershed
• Cache River National Wildlife Refuge (Arkansas)—$5
million to purchase lands from willing sellers. The Cache
River basin is an important tributary in the Mississippi
River system and provides wintering habitat to hundreds of
thousands of migratory waterfowl. The Cache River National
Wildlife Refuge was expanded in 2013 with community
support and five willing sellers are ready to move forward
with sales of priority lands that would connect current
refuge holdings, build links with other conserved lands,
and offer opportunities to restore bottomland hardwood
forest. This habitat has declined by 80% in recent decades
and is essential for neotropical migratory songbirds. The
project also increases public access for world-class waterfowl
hunting and is supported by local communities;
• Silvio O. Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge
(New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and
Connecticut)—$6.5 million to acquire land and
conservation easements in focus areas of the Connecticut
River watershed, including a multi-phased effort to acquire
conservation easements on more than 13,000 acres in the
Vermont and New Hampshire Upper Valley Region that is
considered the highest conservation priority by state wildlife
action plans. The Mascoma River Headwaters/Bear Hill
property provides habitat for black bear, is important to
wood duck, black duck and woodcock, and has some of the
Flint Hills NWR
Connecticut River
Watershed
Sagebrush
Steppe
Mojave Desert
Blackwater NWR
Northern
Everglades
Lower
Mississippi
Gulf of
Mexico
NWRS map underlying NWRA Focus Areas provided by FWS
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National Wildlife Refuge Association
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
highest densities of Canada warblers in North America.
The mosaic of habitats, riparian corridors, and grasslands
make this a conservation priority for the Northeast and
is supported by the adjacent communities. The project is
being leveraged by a private foundation and will expand
access around the world famous Appalachian Trail;
• Flint Hills Legacy Conservation Area (Kansas)—$3
million to acquire conservation easements to protect the
largest and most important remaining tallgrass prairie
on the continent. This partnership between ranchers and
partners will benefit declining grassland birds, beetles and
butterflies and support this important cattle producing
region;
• Bear River Watershed Conservation Area (Utah, Wyoming
and Idaho)—$2 million to purchase conservation
easements to protect water quality, water quantity and
wildlife habitat on ranchlands in the largest freshwater
drainage into the Great Salt Lake. This region is at the
heart of two major migratory bird flyways, the Pacific and
the Central, and provides habitat for some of the largest
breeding populations of cinnamon teal, white faced ibis,
and hundreds of thousands of other migratory waterfowl,
wading birds and shorebirds. Sagebrush steppe uplands
support greater sage-grouse, mule deer, elk and pronghorn,
while the Upper Bear River is an important cold water
fishery for Bonneville cutthroat trout. The U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service is working with state and federal agriculture
programs, partner agencies, private and nongovernment
groups to achieve a matrix of conservation land;
• Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge (Maryland)—
$1 million to conserve critical marshlands of the
Chesapeake Bay that provide important habitat for a
diverse range of waterfowl and declining migratory birds.
These marshlands and associated uplands are also critical
for de-listing the Delmarva fox squirrel. This priority
acquisition, in partnership with the Friends of Blackwater,
leverages the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad
National Monument and has wide community support;
• John H. Chafee National Wildlife Refuge (Rhode
Island)—$1 million to conserve and restore highly
productive coastal salt marsh habitat that is important to
waterfowl and shorebirds and acts as a critical nursery for
important commercial fish. It helps protect man-made
structures from storm surge and increased coastal flooding
due to climate change, and conserves this wild gem
from the area’s rapid development. This Refuge, named
after one of the Senate’s great conservationists, has broad
community support.
Above: Western Grebe and chick | David Scholl • Top: Great Blue Heron | Ted Steinke
National Wildlife Refuge Association
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Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
eauthorize the North American
❸ RWetlands
Conservation Act (NAWCA)
at $75 million and allocate $35
million for FY15
The North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA)
supports habitat restoration, water quality improvements
and carbon sequestration. These projects, developed by
landowners and organizations at the community level, benefit
continental mallards, northern pintail, other waterfowl, and
declining migratory bird species. NAWCA matching grants
fuel a public-private partnership between the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service, landowners and conservation organizations
to conserve and/or restore wetlands and associated upland
habitats that are vital to the production and survival of
waterfowl, shorebirds, waterbirds and songbirds and, in turn,
to the millions of Americans who depend on these species for
hunting, birding and other outdoor pursuits.
eauthorize and fund the Partners
❹ Rfor
Fish and Wildlife program at $75
million
The Partners for Fish and Wildlife program (Partners Program)
is one of our most effective tools for building partnerships
between public agencies and private landowners to conserve
America’s expansive working landscapes. The Partners Program
has led the success of such iconic landscape conservation
projects as the Rocky Mountain Front and Blackfoot
Challenge in Montana, and the Flint Hills in Kansas, and is
playing a key role in conserving greater sage-grouse habitat in
the intermountain west. Through the program, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service provides technical and financial support
to private landowners to conserve and restore habitat for
fish and wildlife. The program consistently leverages federal
dollars for conservation, generating nearly $16 in economic
return for every $1 appropriated for programs. The Refuge
Meghan Brown
8
National Wildlife Refuge Association
Top: Mallards in flight in the South Platte Focus Area in Colorado | Matt Filsinger USFWS
Above: Region 6 PFW employees speaking with a cooperator (far left) who voluntarily
entered into an agreement with the PFW Program to restore a portion of the Jocko River
| Matt Filsinger USFWS
Association and landowner-led Partners for Conservation asks
Congress to reauthorize the Partners Program, and requests a
FY15 appropriation of $75 million. Such a funding level would
result in an additional $400 million worth of conservation across
the nation.
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
Fire on Merritt Island NWR, FL | USFWS
upport FWS programs that significantly leverage federal dollars and protect our
❺ Scommunities
and natural resources
The National Wildlife Refuge System benefits by working
in concert with many other U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
initiatives to conserve waterfowl, migratory birds, at-risk
species and threatened and endangered species. In recognition
of the strategic leverage between refuges and other U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service programs, the Refuge Association urges
Congress to support:
• Robust Refuge Fire Operations Budget — Fire is one of
the Service’s most important tools for managing wildlife
habitat; however, due to the catastrophic western wildfires
made worse by climate change and fuel loading, funds for
refuge fire management have been consistently diverted to
fighting wildfires and protecting the forest-urban interface.
While these challenges are extremely important, resources
are needed to allow refuges to manage dangerous fuel loads
in fire-dependent systems — some of which are seeing record
droughts. Additionally, refuges must be able to use fire
management to improve habitat for many threatened and
endangered species such as red-cockaded woodpecker, at-risk
species such as gopher tortoise and important game birds such
as wild turkey and bobwhite quail. The Refuge Association
urges Congress to provide $60 million in dedicated funding to
the Refuge System’s fire program through the Department of
the Interior’s Hazardous Fuel Reduction program;
• Coastal Program—A sister program to Partners for Fish and
Wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Coastal Program
provides technical and financial assistance for voluntary efforts
to protect and restore high-priority coastal habitats for wildlife.
The coastal program is critical to implementing resiliency and
adaption strategies in Rhode Island, New York and other
Northeast States in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and equally
critical to the recovery of the Gulf of Mexico in the aftermath
National Wildlife Refuge Association
9
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
of the Deepwater Horizon catastrophic oil spill. The coastal
program provides nearly $13 in economic return for every $1
in program funds. The Refuge Association asks Congress to
fund the Coastal Program at $13 million for FY15;
• Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act (NMBCA)—
While wildlife species are protected within the boundaries of
the National Wildlife Refuge System, NMBCA grants conserve
the habitats that neotropical birds use along their migration
north and south and in their wintering range throughout the
Caribbean, Central, and South America. This Act fortifies
investments on national wildlife refuges by conserving “our”
birds during critical periods of their lifecycles spent outside
of refuges and often outside the United States. The NMBCA
funds are critical in safeguarding declining migratory birds
such as Cerulean, Canada, Kirtland’s, and Swainson’s warblers,
wood thrush and many other declining migratory birds
whether here in the U.S. or with our neighbors to the south.
The Refuge Association requests that Congress reauthorize the
NMBCA and provide $4 million for FY15;
• Multinational Species Conservation Funds—Wildlife know
no international boundaries, and therefore conservation
must happen on a global scale to ensure species survival.
Many international wildlife agencies look to the National
Wildlife Refuge System as the world leader in wildlife and fish
conservation. The Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife Without
Borders program and the Multinational Species Conservation
Funds together support global partnerships to protect marine
Wild Beach Chincoteague NWR, VA | USFWS Emma Kerr
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National Wildlife Refuge Association
Seal Pup at Back Bay NWR, VA | USFWS
turtles, tigers and rhinos, great apes and elephants and other
iconic species. Particularly in light of the poaching crisis that
is decimating many important wildlife species, the Refuge
Association joins many conservation partners in asking
Congress to appropriate $9.1 million for the Funds in FY15;
• State Wildlife Grants —The Fish and Wildlife Service works
with states to keep common species common and restore
declining species before they warrant listing under the
Endangered Species Act. The Refuge Association asks Congress
to fund the State Wildlife Grants Program at $58.7 million
for FY15 to fulfill the shared federal-state responsibility for
keeping our nation’s wildlife from becoming endangered.
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
Refuge road on “Ding” Darling NWR, FL | Steve Hildebrand
ass a Transportation Bill with
❼ Pdedicated
funding for Refuge
System roads and transportation
infrastructure
Sage Grouse | USFWS
species before they are
❻ Restoring
listed
under the Endangered
Species Act
Providing incentives for conservation on private lands holds
great potential for the protection and recovery of at-risk species.
A public-private partnership operating in and around the Hart
Mountain and Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge Complex
in Nevada and Oregon could play a pivotal role in protecting
greater sage-grouse habitat and keeping the species from being
federally listed under the Endangered Species Act. Habitat
protection in Texas and Kansas could keep lesser prairie chicken
from being listed, and habitat protection in the Southeast
could prevent gopher tortoise from being listed. The Refuge
Association urges Congress to fund $30 million to advance
public-private partnerships for restoration and conservation
easements on strategic private lands from willing landowners.
To accommodate 46.5 million annual refuge visitors and their
recreational needs, the Refuge System must maintain and
improve roads, trails and other transportation infrastructure
on its network of lands. Refuges provide nearly $5 in economic
output for every dollar invested by Congress, creating an
impressive $2.4 billion return for taxpayers, and a competitive
return on investment as compared with the private sector. To
nurture this growing economic powerhouse that currently
supports 37,000 local jobs in the recreation and outdoor
industry, funding is needed to repair and build better roads
that provide safer access to these federal lands. Transportation
enhancement projects can also significantly reduce vehicular
collisions with wildlife with appropriate crossings and
signage. The Refuge Association calls on Congress to pass
a national transportation bill that provides $100 million
annually specifically for roads, trails, and alternative modes of
transportation on our nation’s refuges.
National Wildlife Refuge Association
11
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
ass the Fish and Wildlife Service
❽ PResource
Protection Act.
Since 1996, the National Park Service has had the authority
to seek and retain compensation from responsible parties
who injure park resources, whether through vandalism,
encroachment, or chemical spills. The Refuge System has no
such authority; fines levied for most types of damage to refuge
resources currently go to the General Treasury and can only be
made available to the Service to repair or replace those resources
with further congressional action. The Refuge Association urges
Congress to pass the Fish and Wildlife Resource Protection
Act—budget-neutral legislation that grants the Service the same
common-sense authority to that was given to the National Park
Service more than 15 years ago.
Oil arrives on Bon Secour NWR, AL | USFWS
eauthorize the Volunteer and
❾ RCommunity
Partnership Act
In 2013, more than 38,000 volunteers donated more than 1.4
million hours, a 22% boost to the National Wildlife Refuge
System workforce. This vital contribution was the equivalent of
an additional 702 full-time equivalent employees and valued at
$31 million. The Volunteer and Community Partnership Act
encourages the use of volunteers to assist the Refuge System
in tasks ranging from removing invasive species to delivering
recreation opportunities to the public. The Act also facilitates
partnerships between the Refuge System and non-federal entities
to promote conservation and awareness. The Refuge Association
asks the Senate to reauthorize this valuable legislation, which has
already passed in the House of Representatives.
Above: Volunteer teaches Naturalists in training at Tualatin NWR, OR | USFWS.
Below: Oregon coast | Dan Magneson
12
National Wildlife Refuge Association
Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
Bitter Lake NWR, NM | Gordon Warrick
❿ Retain refuge establishment authority
Bighorn Sheep at National Elk Refuge, WY | Anthony Lasuzzo
National wildlife refuges are created through a combination of
science-based planning and an extensive stakeholder engagement
process that seeks local support, input and opinion on new refuge
proposals, according to guidance by the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA). Refuge proposals and expansions that have
demonstrated local support have been successful, while those
that did not seek or gain community input have been shelved,
regardless of their conservation merit. The Service has a proven
track record of engaging local stakeholders in this process,
which enjoys the support of 40,000 Friends, landowners and
conservation organizations. Excellent examples of successful
projects that built strong local support include the Bear River
Watershed Conservation Area, the Blackfoot Challenge, the
Dakota Grasslands Conservation Area, the Rocky Mountain
Front and the Everglades Headwaters. Recent congressional
proposals would move the refuge creation process to Washington,
D.C. and thus introduce national politics into what has been a
locally-led, community-based process. The Refuge Association is
strongly opposed to such a move, and urges Congress to reject
any effort to move refuge strategic growth to Washington, D.C.
and away from local communities.
National Wildlife Refuge Association
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Legislative Priorities for America’s Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge System
Conclusion
The National Wildlife Refuge System is an efficient investment for Congress and the American people. The
National Refuge Association’s FY15 Legislative Priorities represent the essential needs for upholding the federal
obligation to conserve fish and wildlife and the habitats they need. These funding requests and actions will
provide real and meaningful conservation results that will be enjoyed by not only the 46.5 million Americans
who visit the Refuge System annually, but also the millions of Americans who benefit from the $33 billion worth
of clean water, clean air, cool climate, and thriving wildlife that refuges provide, not to mention the $2.4 billion
in direct economic return in the communities that border refuges. These legislative priorities are necessary to
keep our waterfowl and other migratory bird populations strong and restore wildlife species that are endangered
or headed in that direction. Virtually all Americans, whether they are landowners, ranchers, timber managers,
students, birders, backpackers, hunters, anglers, kayakers or families looking to reconnect nature, will benefit
from these actions by Congress. A relatively small investment will produce exponential returns.
Please join the National Wildlife Refuge Association, our members, our 204 affiliated Refuge Friends groups
around the country and a diverse and large group of partners to support the necessary funds and policies to
uphold the promise made to the American people to protect and enhance our world-class network of lands for
wildlife.
For questions or inquiries, please contact
Desiree Sorenson-Groves
Vice President for Government Relations
at 202-290-5593
or dgroves@refugeassociation.org.
Bear Lake NWR, ID | Amy Leist
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National Wildlife Refuge Association
National Wildlife Refuge Association Affiliate Organizations
NWRA’s Friends Affiliate program is a network of over 200 Friends groups aligned around the concept that just as refuges are linked
ecologically, they are linked by mission and purpose. These groups recognize that it’s crucial to speak with a unified voice about the
needs of our refuges and related conservation programs.
Alaska Geographic
Amigos de la Sevilleta
Arthur R. Marshall
Foundation
Audubon Refuge Partners,
Inc.
Back Bay Restoration
Foundation
Big Oaks Conservation
Society
Booth Society
Cabeza Prieta Natural History
Association
Central Basin Audubon, ARK
Chincoteague Natural History
Association
Citizen’s Committee to
Complete the Refuge
Coastal Wildlife Refuge
Society
Columbia Gorge Refuge
Stewards
“Ding” Darling Wildlife
Society
Evergreen Lakes Society
Friends and Volunteers of
Refuges Florida Keys
Friends in Support of the
Hatchery
Friends of Alaska NWRs
Friends of Anahuac Refuge
Friends of Aransas and
Matagorda Island NWR
Friends of Assabet River NWR
Friends of Back Bay
Friends of Balcones
Canyonlands NWR
Friends of Bayou Teche
Refuge
Friends of Big Lake
Friends of Bitter Lake NWR, Inc
Friends of Black Bayou, Inc.
Friends of Blackwater NWR
Friends of Bombay Hook, Inc
Friends of Bon Secour NWR
Friends of Bosque del Apache
NWR
Friends of Boyer Chute and
DeSoto NWRs
Friends of Brazoria Wildlife
Refuges
Friends of Buenos Aires NWR
Friends of Caddo Lake NWR
Friends of Cahaba River NWR
Friends of California
Condors—Wild & Free
Friends of Camas NWR
Friends of Cape May NWR
Friends of Carson Fish
Hatchery
Friends of Cherry Valley
Friends of Clarks River NWR
Friends of Crab Orchard
Refuge
Friends of Crane Meadows
NWR
Friends of Dahomey NWR
Friends of Deer Flat NWR
Friends of Dungeness NWR
Friends of Eastern Neck, Inc
Friends of Erie NWR
Friends of Felsenthal, Inc
Friends of Forsythe NWR
Friends of Gavins Point NFH
Friends of Great Falls
Discovery Center
Friends of Great Swamp NWR
Friends of Hagerman NWR
Friends of Hart Mountain
National Antelope Refuge
Friends of Haystack Rock
Friends of Heinz Refuge at
Tinicum (FOHR Tinicum)
Friends of Humboldt Bay
NWR
Friends of Iroquois NWR
Friends of Kenai NWR
Friends of Kootenai NWR
Friends of Laguna Atascosa
NWR
Friends of Lake Woodruff
NWR
Friends of Las Vegas NWR
Friends of Louisiana Wildlife
Refuges, Inc.
Friends of Mackay Island
NWR
Friends of Maga Ta-Hohpi
Friends of Maine Seabird
Islands
Friends of Mid-Columbia
River Wildlife Refuges
Friends of Midway Atoll NWR
Friends of Missisquoi NWR
Friends of Monomoy
Friends of Moosehorn NWR
Friends of Neal Smith NWR
Friends of Necedah NWR
Friends of Nisqually NWR
Friends of Norwalk Islands,
Inc.
Friends of Noxubee Refuge
Friends of Nulhegan
Friends of NWRs of Rhode
Island
Friends of Ohio River Islands
NWR, Inc.
Friends of Outer Island
Friends of Parker River NWR
Friends of Patoka River NWR
Friends of Patuxent
Friends of Pee Dee NWR
Friends of Plum and Pilot
Islands
Friends of Pocosin Lakes
NWR
Friends of Pondicherry
Friends of Pool 10
Friends of Pool 9-Upper Miss
Refuge
Friends of Potomac River
Refuges
Friends of Prime Hook NWR,
Inc.
Friends of Quivira NWR
Friends of Rachel Carson
NWR
Friends of Refuge
Headwaters
Friends of Rice Lake Refuge
Friends of Ridgefield NWR
Friends of San Diego Wildlife
Refuges
Friends of Seal Beach NWR
Friends of Sherburne NWR
Friends of Shiawassee NWR
Friends of Silvio Conte
Friends of Southwest
Louisiana NWRs &
Wetlands
Friends of Squaw Creek NWR
Friends of St Catherine Creek
Refuge
Friends of Stillwater NWR
Friends of Sullys Hill
Friends of Sunkhaze
Meadows
Friends of Supawna
Meadows NWR
Friends of Tamarac NWR
Friends of Tennessee NWR
Friends of the 500th
Friends of the Antioch Dunes,
Inc.
Friends of the Arthur R.
Marshall Loxahatchee
Refuge
Friends of the Bear River
Migratory Bird Refuge
Friends of the Cache River
Watershed
Friends of the Carr Refuge
Friends of the Crystal River
NWRC
Friends of the Deep Fork
NWR
Friends of the Desert
National Wildlife Refuge
Comples
Friends of the Detroit Lakes
WMD
Friends of the Florida
Panther NWR
Friends of the Front Range
Friends of the Great Plains
Nature Center
Friends of the Hakalau Forest
NWR
Friends of the Horicon NWR
Friends of the Little Pend
Oreille
Friends of the Migratory
Bird/Duck Stamp
Friends of the Minnesota
Valley
Friends of the Modoc NWR
Friends of the Montezuma
Wetlands Complex
Friends of the Morris
Wetlands Management
District
Friends of the National
Conservation Traning
Center
Friends of the Oxbow NWR
Friends of the Reach
Friends of the Red River NWR
Friends of the San Luis Valley
NWR
Friends of the San Pablo
Bay NWR
Friends of the Santee NWR
Friends of the Savannah
Coastal Wildlife Refuges,
Inc
Friends of the St. Croix
Wetland Management
District
Friends of the Suwannee and
Cedar Keys NWR
Friends of the Swan Lake
NWR
Friends of the Tampa Bay
NWR
Friends of the Tualatin River
NWR
Friends of the Upper
Mississippi Fishery Services
Friends of Trempealeau NWR
Friends of Trinity River NWR
Friends of Turnbull NWR
Friends of Union Slough
NWR
Friends of Unity Wetlands
Friends of Wallkill River NWR
Friends of Wertheim NWR
Friends of West Tennessee
Refuge
Friends of White River NWR
Friends of the Wichitas
Friends of Willamette Valley
NWRC
Friends of Willapa NWR
Friends of Windom Wetland
Management District
Great Dismal Swamp
Coalition
Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes
Center
International Wildlife Refuge
Alliance
Kilauea Point Natural History
Association
Lostwood Birding and Nature
Association
Malheur Wildlife Associates
Merritt Island Wildlife
Association
Mingo Swamp Friends
Mississippi River Wild
Muscatatuck Wildlife Society
Nevada Wilderness Project
Okefenokee Wildlife League
Ottawa NWR Association
Pelican Island Preservation
Society
Portneuf Valley Audubon
Society
Prairie Pothole Partners
PRBO Conservation Science
Rappahannock Wildlife
Refuge Friends, Inc.
Red Wolf Coalition
Refuge Friends Inc
Salmon River Watershed
Partnership
San Francisco Bay Wildlife
Society
Sandhills Prairie Refuge
Association
Seney Natural History
Association
SEWEE Association
(Southeastern Wildlife &
Environmental Education)
Shoreline Education for
Awareness (SEA)
Southeast Wildlife
Conservation Group
Southwest Wetlands
Interpretative Association
Spring Wings
St. Marks Refuge Association
Stone Lakes NWR Association
Supporters of St. Vincent
NWR, Inc.
The Great Lakes Experience
Theodore Roosevelt Society,
Inc.
Ticatove-Grupo de
Conservation de Vieques
Tishomingo Refuge Ecology
& Education Society
(T.R.E.E.S)
Valley Nature Center
Wheeler Wildlife Refuge
Association
Holla Bend NWR, AR | Mark T. Carr
1001 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 905, Washington, DC 20036
202-417-3803
www.refugeassociation.org