Big Fin Op-Ed in Major Newspaper

[smarandr]

. . .and I use the term "major newspaper" loosely. An excellent article nonetheless, run in today's Idaho State Journal:

Protecting Idaho’s outdoors for future generations

As host of “Fresh Tracks with Randy Newberg,” on the Sportsman Channel, I hunt in some of the most interesting landscapes across the United States. I’ve hunted all over this great country — elk in Montana, mule deer in Idaho, you name it. This summer, I made one of the wildest treks yet when I went to Washington, D.C. to meet with Senators about the importance of reauthorizing the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Now 50 years old, the Land and Water Conservation Fund has been our most successful conservation and access endeavor — protecting our American history and heritage. The Land and Water Conservation Fund uses receipts from one national resource, gas and oil, to invest in future resources for all Americans. Not a single taxpayer dollar is used, just a small portion of federal offshore oil and gas royalties.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund is so important to us because of what it means for hunting and fishing. The Fund conserves public land and clean water for recreation and wildlife habitat, and supports the hunting, angling and outdoor recreation economy — $646 billion per year.

In Idaho alone, a report from the Outdoor Industry Association shows that outdoor recreation generates 77,000 direct jobs, $6.3 billion in consumer spending, $1.8 billion in salaries and wages and $461 million in state and local tax revenue. Protecting Idaho’s outdoors through the Land and Water Conservation Fund isn’t just common sense, it makes economic sense.

If you’re a hunter or angler, you know our traditions depend on healthy wildlife habitat — room for big game to roam; clean, cold water to support fish; extensive wetlands to produce waterfowl. The Land and Water Conservation Fund has protected, and continues to protect, large areas of contiguous wildlife habitat that are critical to hunting and fishing across our country and across Idaho.

Elsewhere in Idaho, the Land and Water Conservation Fund protects world-famous fly fishing on the Upper Snake River, prime elk hunting at Bear River Watershed Conservation Area and endless hunting and angling opportunities at Salmon Challis National Forest. In 1968, the Land and Water Conservation Fund protected some world-class steelhead fishing; one of the first areas to be designated as “Wild & Scenic” — the Middle Fork of the Clearwater River. When it comes to bountiful lands chock full of opportunity, hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts across Idaho reap the rewards the Land and Water Conservation Fund provides.

Access is the most important issue facing sportsmen today. Changing land use and ownership patterns can cut off historic recreational access. Often times, vast expanses of public land are separated from roads and towns by narrow strips that are in private ownership, necessitating a long drive to access hunting or fishing grounds only a few miles away.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund is used for strategic purchases that defuse conflicts with private landowners and secure permanent public access. A proposal within the Land and Water Conservation Fund called Making Public Lands Public would set aside 1.5 percent of Land and Water Conservation funds specifically for access projects.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund is a common-sense program that affects every state — Idaho in particular — and keeps public lands public. Representative Simpson has been a strong supporter of the Land and Water Conservation Fund for Idaho, and I’m hopeful his colleagues in the House will do the same.

Senator Risch and Senator Crapo have also demonstrated support for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and I urge them to raise their voices during this critical time in the program’s history so that it may continue to bolster local economies, provide access to the recreation, and maintain Idaho’s world class wildlife resources, scenery and character.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund needs to be reauthorized before September 2015. Now is the time to reauthorize and fully fund this program, which is vital to Idaho’s economy, her hunters, anglers and all who enjoy the great outdoors.

Randy Newberg is host and producer of “Fresh Tracks,” a syndicated television show on the Sportsman Channel. The program takes viewers through a year in Randy’s life. Randy is a staunch supporter and user of Idaho’s Access Yes!, a state access program that allows public hunting on enrolled private lands. He was raised in Big Falls, Minnesota, and currently resides in Bozeman, Mont.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Randy can write with the best of them and it's sure great having him on our side!!!

 

[smarandr]

Agreed.