Acting Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett today announced that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding $1,752,952 million to help eight federally recognized Indian tribes in the Southwest Region to manage, conserve and protect fish and wildlife resources on tribal lands. The Southwest Region encompasses Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is awarding these grants under two new programs, the Tribal Landowner Incentive Program and Tribal Wildlife Grant Program. These grant programs are designed to assist states, local communities, private landowners and other partners undertake wildlife conservation projects.
"Native Americans have a great knowledge of, and intimate connection with, the land and its wildlife," said Dr. Benjamin Tuggle, Southwest Regional Director. "Cooperative programs such as the Tribal Wildlife Grant and Tribal Landowner Incentive programs represent the Fish and Wildlife Services recognition that best conservation and environmental protections result when tribes, landowners, hunters and anglers, local organizations and communities work together."
Since 2003, the Service has put over $23 million to work for tribal conservation efforts through both the Tribal Landowner Incentive Program and the Tribal Wildlife Grant Program.
The 565 federally recognized Indian tribes have a controlling interest in more than 52 million acres of tribal trust lands and an additional 40 million acres held by Alaska Native corporations. Much of this land is relatively undisturbed, providing a significant amount of rare and important fish and wildlife habitat. "
The Tribal Landowner Incentive Program supports federally recognized Indian tribes to protect, restore, and manage habitat to benefit species at-risk, including federally listed endangered or threatened species, as well as proposed or candidate species on tribal lands.
Tribal Landowner Incentive Program grants awarded:
Navajo Nation, in the amount of $150,000 for Distributional Analysis of Gunnisons Prairie Dog on the Navajo Nation and Reservation of the Hopi tribe.
Pueblo of Santo Domingo in New Mexico, in the amount of $148,348 for Rio Galisteo Restoration Project.
The Tribal Wildlife Grant Program supports federally recognized Indian tribes to develop and implement programs that benefit wildlife and their habitat, including non-game species on tribal lands.
Tribal Wildlife grants awarded:
Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas, in the amount of $209,277 for a Fish and Wildlife Inventory and Habitat Preservation Project.
Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma, in the amount of $249,997 for Development of Culturing Capability of the Neosho Madtom for Future Reintroduction and Reintroduction of the Neosho Mucket to the Spring and Neosho Rivers.
Pueblo of Laguna in New Mexico, in the amount of $246,100 for Baseline Characterization of Resources and Riparian Habitat Restoration.
Pueblo of Santa Clara in New Mexico, in the amount of $249,411 for Riparian and Wetland Habitat Re-Creation at Santa Clara Pueblo.
Ohkay Owingeh (San Juan Pueblo) in New Mexico, in the amount of $249,990 for Wetland Restoration at Ohkay Owingeh Fish Pond.
Pueblo of Taos in New Mexico, in the amount of $249,829 for Restoring Bighorn Sheep along the Northern Rio Grande.
Visit the Services website at http://www.fws.gov.
