The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is seeking proposals from states and U.S. territories interested in acquiring land or conducting conservation planning for endangered species. Three innovative grant programs, totaling $85.7 million, are available to states willing to purchase land or improve habitat for federally protected species. The grants are expected to be awarded summer 2002.
"Local involvement is the cornerstone of conservation success," said Service Director Steve Williams. "Through programs such as these, the Service is building stronger partnerships with the states and finding new ways to support and work with landowners willing to provide valuable habitat for wildlife."
The grants will be awarded from the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, authorized under the Endangered Species Act. This fund provides grants to states and territories to support their participation in a wide array of voluntary conservation projects for listed species, as well as for species either proposed or candidates for listing. By law, the state or territory must contribute 25% of the estimated program costs of approved projects, or 10% when two or more states or territories undertake a joint project.
The three grant programs are:
Recovery Land Acquisition Grants ($17.8 million)
- These grants provide funds to states and territories for acquisition of habitat for endangered and threatened species in support of approved recovery plans. Acquisition of habitat to secure long term protection is often an essential element of a comprehensive recovery effort for a listed species.Habitat Conservation Planning Assistance Grants ($6.6 million)
- These grants provide funds to states and territories to support the development of Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs), through the support of baseline surveys and inventories, document preparation, outreach, and similar planning activities.HCP Land Acquisition Grants ($61.3 million)
- These grants provide funds to states and territories to acquire land associated with approved HCPs. Grants do not fund the mitigation required of an HCP permittee; instead, they support conservation actions by the State or local governments that complement mitigation.For more information about these grants contact: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Consultation, Habitat Conservation Planning, Recovery and State Grants, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 420, Arlington, VA 22203, 703-358-2106.
Information also can be accessed at http://endangered.fws.gov/grants/.
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 nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
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For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
visit our home page at http://www.fws.gov
