- March 8, 2012 Coalition Applauds Senate for Dedicated Conservation Funding
- February 13, 2012 Coalition Applauds President's Continued Support for Conservation Funding
- December 17, 2011 Conservation, Business and Sportsmen Groups Applaud Congressional Efforts to Protect LWCF Funding in FY12 Budget
- July 25, 2011- New Bipartisan Poll Shows Overwhelming Support Across America for Land and Water Conservation Fund
- July 13, 2011- National Bipartisan Poll Memo
- May 31, 2011- Over One-Third of the U.S. House of Representatives Sign Letter Supporting Funding for LWCF
- April 14, 2011- Conrad Anchor Testimony Release
- December 20, 2010 - Senate Urged to Join House and Pass Bill with Full Funding for Conservation Program »
- August 3, 2010 - Senate Urged to Join House and Pass Bill with Full Funding for Conservation Program »
- July 15, 2010 - House Committee Passes Bill Securing Funding for Conservation and Recreation Program »
- April 16, 2010 - America's Great Outdoors Conference Focuses on Need for Vital Land, Recreation Funding »
- February 1, 2010 - Obama's Budget Includes Key Funding for Land & Water »
- November 6, 2009 - Senate Bill Would Fulfill Longstanding Promise for Conservation and Recreation Program »
- September 17 , 2009 - Coalition Supports Conservation at House Hearing »
Preserving our Natural Heritage
In 1964, my Uncle Stewart Udall, then the U.S. Interior Secretary, and father then-Rep. Mo Udall, helped create the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which was intended to balance the loss of oil and gas drilled from public lands and waters with the conservation of some of our most precious natural places. For the past 45 years, the LWCF has enabled a small portion of the royalties collected from drilling to be used to preserve our country's great outdoors - helping protect some of our most beloved natural places, including Grand Canyon National Park, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and Colorado's very own Great Sand Dunes National Park.
But even though oil and gas production has increased over the decades, the LWCF has never been funded at the level that was originally intended. Over the course of its history, $17 billion dollars from revenues designated for the fund have been diverted and used for non-conservation purposes. In the words of the current Interior Secretary Ken Salazar: this is a "broken promise" to the American people.
The devastating BP oil spill in the Gulf has highlighted the need to balance the resources we use by conserving others. And that's why I'm supporting a measure in the U.S. Senate that invests in the LWCF. Not only will it help preserve our open spaces, it will help protect and create jobs in Colorado and across the country. Hunting and fishing - much of it on public lands and waters - sustain more than 1.6 million jobs and support a $76 billion sporting industry nationally.
It's time to ensure that the LWCF is funded each year as it was intended so it can meet its full potential. This includes the purchase of conservation easements that help keep farms, forests, and ranches under private ownership. It also includes preserving open spaces and critical wildlife habitat.
I have fought for adequate funding for the LWCF throughout my career in the U.S. House and Senate, most recently leading the effort on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, on which I sit. And as the debate on this measure continues in the Senate, I will continue to urge my colleagues to fully fund the LWCF so that our country's special places can be enjoyed for years to come.