The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will provide more than $62 million nationally in wildlife grants to state and territorial wildlife agencies. A total of $12,131,979 will be distributed between 10 southeastern states, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.

“These grants help the States conserve rare wildlife and their habitats,” said Sam D. Hamilton, Southeast regional director. “State and territories use their expertise to create programs that address local natural resource challenges – cooperative conservation.”

The Grants are funded under the 2005 Interior Department Appropriations Act. Some examples of ongoing State Wildlife Grant projects include:

• The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has developed a Non-game Aquatics Program that provides technical guidance regarding habitat conservation and conducts surveys to provide distribution, status, life history, and habitat assessment information for state-listed, and other aquatic species with potentially important conservation needs, and their associated ecosystems. The surveys will help identify priority areas for habitat restoration or management for species. The data will also provide information about where and how development might occur which would minimize wildlife impacts and provide insights into how to do successful mitigation or restoration.
  
  
• The Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources will purchase 327 acres of private lands at Tres Picachos Forest to protect and conserve the high biodiversity of species. Acquisition provides conservation of these areas for over 125 wildlife species including more than 15 species of greatest conservation need, and three species listed as endangered.
  
  
• The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has undertaken a project to determine impacts of natural area designations and various forestry practices on resident and migratory landbirds in a bottomland hardwood ecosystem. This data will enable the state to enhance larger landscape trend data to the national Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship program and develop forestry practices recommendations for bird conservation.
  

The Service is working closely with State planners to develop Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plans. Future eligibility for State Wildlife Grant funds is contingent upon each state’s completion of Comprehensive Plans by October 1, 2005.

States may use the funds for either planning or project implementation activities. States may receive no more than five percent or less than one percent of the total available funds. The District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will receive one-half of 1 percent and Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marina Islands will receive one-fourth of one percent. For the 50 States, the apportionment is based on a formula that uses each State’s land area and population.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages the migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. The Federal Assistance program grants hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to its partnering State fish and wildlife agencies to conserve fish and wildlife resources.

2005 News Releases