Improving Efficiency and Flexibility of Private Forest Conservation Funding
INTRODUCED FRIDAY, BROAD STAKEHOLDER GROUP SUPPORTS H.R. 4551 TO STRENGTHEN KEY CONSERVATION FUNDING PROGRAM.
For Immediate Release—May 6, 2014—A diverse network of forest land owners, environmental groups and land trusts are urging support for a bipartisan bill to make it easier and more cost-effective to conserve threatened private forestlands through stronger partnerships with land trusts. A technical tweak to the USDA’s Forest Legacy Program would expand public-private conservation partnerships and remove unnecessary barriers to forestland protection. The need for this bill is critical; on average over 1 million acres of forestland have been lost to conversion annually over the last 20 years.
Rep. Chris Gibson (R-NY) recently introduced a bill to make this important change. H.R. 4551 – the Forest Legacy Management Flexibility Act – allows land trusts to serve as the grantees of Forest Legacy easements when directed to by the state lead agency. “The forest legacy program enjoys broad support in Congress and among the land trust and conservation community,” said Congressman Chris Gibson (NY-19). “This common-sense reform will allow accredited land trusts and conservation groups to hold and manage forest legacy projects, bringing this critical program into line with other conservation programs. This is a competitive program and demand outpaces funding. This reform will allow states, if they choose, to leverage private funding sources.”
The USDA’s Forest Legacy Program provides Land and Water Conservation Fund monies – generated by federal offshore oil and gas leases – to states to pay for public-private working forest conservation. H.R. 4551 would give states the option of selecting a land trust partner to work with on a case-by-case basis, with no other changes to the program. The groups advocating for this change – representing over 50 organizations and landowners – signed on to a letter (download here) sent to the chairman and ranking member of the House Agriculture committee, which has oversight of the Forest Legacy Program.
While the Forest Legacy Program is a powerful tool for the conservation of private working forestlands, the program is constrained by the fact that only governmental agencies are allowed to hold the conservation easements it funds. Because easements entail ongoing stewardship and monitoring obligations from entities that hold them, Forest Legacy requires a substantial commitment of resources by state implementing agencies. In this time of tight budgets, these costs represent a considerable burden for states.
Further, many private forest owners object to a government agency holding an interest in their land. In fact, two recent Forest Legacy projects, one in California and one in Florida, could not close as planned because the forest landowners so strongly preferred private land trust partners to government agencies as the easement grantees.
“Allowing non-profit land trusts to hold conservation easements funded by Forest Legacy will encourage additional funding partnerships for forest conservation with the charitable sector,” explained Glenn Lamb, Executive Director of the Columbia Land Trust. “Often, private landowners prefer a non-profit to hold an easement, rather than to financially support a transaction where a government agency ends up with the easement. Enabling Forest Legacy to also leverage this kind of private partnership will make this program even more effective.”
“Other federal-state conservation programs already call on land trusts to help implement their programs over the long term through having them hold, monitor, and steward conservation easements, such as the Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Agricultural Lands Easement Program and the North American Wetlands Conservation Act,” said Laurie Wayburn, president of the Pacific Forest Trust, which helped bring the Forest Legacy program to California in 1995. “This approach encourages additional funding partnerships with the charitable sector as well, given that philanthropies often prefer to give to non-profits rather than undertake what they see as a government obligation. And, many private landowners prefer to work with qualified, non- profit land trusts rather than governmental entities. Enabling Forest Legacy to also leverage this kind of private partnership will make this program even better.”
“Protecting our great outdoors provides enormous benefits for our economy, education, and quality of life. When independent entities demonstrate a commitment and ability to manage conservation easements, states should be allowed to designate them as managers – and this bill authorizes that option. Qualified independent stewardship can save taxpayer money while offering better management,” said Congressman Garamendi, a former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior.
For FY2014, the recent budget passed by Congress authorized over $50 million for the Forest Legacy program to protect thousands acres of working forestland from development in 11 states across the country. The funds are primarily awarded to states to purchase conservation easements from willing landowners, ensuring their well-managed forests stay standing in perpetuity. Both cost-effective and practical, conservation easements keep productive forestland intact, privately owned and contributing to local tax rolls. They conserve working landscapes that sustain rural economies while providing clean air and water, climate stabilization and other benefits serving people everywhere.
Media: Laurie Wayburn and other coalition members are available for comment. Call Kim Kowalski at 415-561-0700 ext. 13 or e-mail kkowalski@pacificforest.org to arrange an interview.
About the Pacific Forest Trust
Founded in 1993, the Pacific Forest Trust (PFT) is dedicated to conserving and sustaining America’s vital, productive forest landscapes. Working with forest owners, we focus on conserving privately owned working forests for all the benefits they provide, including clean water, sustainably harvested wood, green jobs, renewable and sustainable energy, fish and wildlife habitat, and a livable climate. With an array of stakeholder partners, we advance innovative, incentive-based strategies to safeguard our nation’s diverse forest landscapes and the communities they support. Learn more at www.pacificforest.org.