The Narragansett Indian Tribe and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service entered into an agreement today in which the Service will grant the tribe $500,000 for the purchase of the nearly 60-acre Downing Salt Pond Partners property in Narragansett, R.I. The property was the site of a pre-contact village and a traditional burial ground for the tribe. Matthew Thomas, Chief Sachem for the tribe, and Richard O. Bennett, Ph.D., acting regional director for the Service in the Northeast, signed the grant agreement at a ceremony this afternoon in Charlestown.
"This grant agreement is a major milestone in our partnership with the Narragansett tribe toward conserving sites that are central to the tribes history," said Bennett. "It is our hope that the tribe will succeed in purchasing the land, ultimately protecting these cultural resources, as well as valuable wetland habitat for wildlife along the shore of Point Judith Pond (known locally as Great Salt Pond)."
"This is truly a great day for the Narragansett Indian Tribe," said Thomas. "This land holds great historical significance for the Tribe, and the purchase will further our efforts to protect our legacy."
Both Bennett and Thomas acknowledged Sen. Jack Reeds (D-RI) leadership in securing federal Land and Water Conservation Fund dollars for the grant.
Under the grant agreement, the tribe would purchase the property directly from the current owner and would own the land outright.
Read more about how the Service works collaboratively with federally recognized Native American Indian tribes to conserve fish, wildlife and their habitats in the Northeast at http://northeast.fws.gov/nativeamerican/.
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 66 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 habitats 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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