The Nature Conservancy Applauds Congressional
Support of Conte Wildlife Refuge in FY 06 Budget
Budget appropriation boosts conservation efforts at Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge
Concord, N.H. — August 2, 2005 — The Nature Conservancy today applauded Congressional action to fund land protection in the Connecticut River watershed with $650,000 from the Land and Water Conservation Fund in Fiscal Year 2006.
Both houses of Congress last week passed the Department of Interior Appropriations bill, and the president is expected to sign the bill into law this month.
The Nature Conservancy is partnering with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect critical habitat in the Silvio Conte National Fish and Wildlife Refuge. In the 7.2-million-acre Connecticut River watershed, where 2.3 million people coexist with hundreds of other species, the Conte Refuge works with partners to conserve key lands and waters, better manage protected land, provide conservation leadership, and inform people about important habitat issues.
In New Hampshire, the Conservancy has helped the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acquire key additions to the Conte Refuge’s Pondicherry Division in Jefferson and Whitefield. In the past two years, the Conservancy has played a key role in adding 1,423 acres of critical habitat to the Pondicherry Refuge for a wide array of waterfowl, songbirds and other wildlife. New Hampshire Audubon also owns land at Pondicherry and is an important conservation partner.
The bill passed last week earmarks $650,000 for the Silvio Conte Refuge, including $500,000 for the refuge’s Pondicherry Division.
“Pondicherry is home to some of New Hampshire’s most critical bird habitat,” said Daryl Burtnett, director of The Nature Conservancy’s New Hampshire chapter. “The support of Senator Judd Gregg was essential to ensuring that this precious landscape will continue to thrive and provide numerous benefits to New Hampshire communities.”
“I am pleased we have been able to provide this support for the Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge,” said Sen. Gregg. “It is a key part of the on-going efforts to protect the unique ecosystems in New Hampshire. I want to thank The Nature Conservancy and New Hampshire Audubon for the commitment they have demonstrated to these goals. Because of their efforts, the quality of life we enjoy here will be strengthened.”
Along with applauding Sen. Gregg for including funding for the Conte Refuge in the Interior appropriations bill, Burtnett also commended Sen. John Sununu and Rep. Charles Bass for their support of the Conte Refuge.
Established by Congress in 1965, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) is one of the nation’s most successful conservation programs. It is the principal source of federal funding for additions to national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests and other public lands.
The LWCF has been responsible for protecting some of America’s greatest national treasures, including the Great Sands Dunes National Park, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and the Everglades. Here in New Hampshire, the LWCF has also been critical for the Great Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Lake Umbagog National Wildlife Refuge and the White Mountain National Forest.
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The Nature Conservancy is a leading international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities representing the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit us on the Web at nature.org.
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