AMC Conservation Action Network News
April 2000

THE LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND (LWCF): Congress is closer than it has been in decades to allocating more than $2.8 billion from offshore oil and gas revenues to parks, wildlife, coastal impact and restoration, and other conservation programs. More than 310 Representatives co-sponsored the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA, H.R. 701) in an incredible show of bipartisan support. CARA would provide full funding for LWCF ($900 million annually) with half the funds set aside for federal projects and half set aside for matching funds to states for state, county, and local parks. CARA would also revive the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Program (UPARR) providing $125 million annually. While the bill does not include provisions for a flexible funding mechanism that recognizes the need to protect regional lands of national significance, it does do more to revitalize LWCF than any other piece of legislation with this much support. For CARA to become law, the House needs to take a vote before the Easter recess, or the legislation will likely get lost for the year. It is critical that there be a vote in the next three weeks.

WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR THE LWCF: Urge your Representative to push for CARA to come up for a vote on the House floor before the Easter recess. A bipartisan victory is possible, but not without a vote. Call the Capitol Switchboard 202-224-3121 or write to your Representative.

WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST PLANNING PROCESS: The U.S. Forest Service filed its Notice of Intent on March 9, which officially began the 60-day comment period on the White Mountain National Forest planning process. This process will determine how the White Mountains will be managed for the next decade and beyond. With growing development pressures throughout the Northeast, the White Mountains are gaining regional importance as an ecological reserve in addition to providing significant backcountry recreation opportunities. Central issues in the planning process include taking the last tracts of uninterrupted forest out of timber management and determining whether to open a portion of the forest to summer off-road vehicle use.

1. Tell the U.S. Forest Service what you value most about the White Mountains using an online letter form (http://www.outdoors.org/Conservation/forest-form.html) Comments must be received by May 8 to be part of the official record.

2. Use the postcard found in the April issue of AMC Outdoors magazine to talk about backcountry recreation pressures and/or the need for roadless areas.

3. Drop in for a few minutes to talk directly to the Forest Service at an open house:

• April 10, 1:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Holiday Inn, Concord, N.H.
• April 11 , 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Radisson Hotel, Chelmsford, Mass.
• April 12, 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., Rumney Town Hall, Rumney, N.H.
• April 13, 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Evans Notch Ranger District Office, Bethel, Maine
• April 13, 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Woodstock Town Hall, N. Woodstock, N.H.
• April 14, 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Saco Ranger District Office, Conway, N.H.
• April 18, 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., Androscoggin Ranger District Office, Gorham, N.H.

4. May 3, join other AMC members for a special meeting with the Forest Service, from 6 to 9 p.m. at Cabot Auditorium, 5 Joy Street, Boston. To register contact conservation@amcinfo.org For More Information: Call the Forest Service Supervisor's Office at 603-528-8721 to request a copy of the Notice of Intent or download it from http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/white.

TUMBLEDOWN MOUNTAIN, MAINE: AMC members as well as local residents and members of the Webb Lake Association, the Foothills Land Conservancy, Western Maine Audubon, and Friends of Maine State Parks have joined forces as the "Tumbledown Conservation Alliance" (TCA) to protect lands in the greater Weld area. The group is working with the state of Maine and other interested parties to protect Tumbledown Mountain, famous for its summit pond and magnificent views toward Weld and Mount Washington. The TCA has raised funding, in part through a significant grant from the AMC Special Projects fund with a match from the Maine Chapter of AMC, to commission a conservation plan that will guide the group's long-term efforts to protect lands in the region. For more information: Contact Gabrielle Kissinger at gkissinger@amcinfo.org.

MOTORCYCLES IN N.J. STATE PARKS: Senate bill No. 529, which would require the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to designate 30 miles of trails for off-road motorcycle use in a state park or forest in northern New Jersey is currently under consideration by the New Jersey Senate Environment Committee. Off-road motorcycles cause serious damage to the environment, including soil erosion, destruction of flora and fauna, degradation of stream banks, and pollution of air and water. Noise and safety concerns associated with off-road motorcycles make this activity incompatible with more passive and benign recreational uses, such as hiking, biking, etc. For this reason, off-road vehicles are inappropriate for use on public lands in New Jersey given their impacts on the environment and other park users. Designating 30 miles of trails for off-road motorcycle use would in effect exclude these more appropriate uses from large areas of public land and produce unacceptable environmental impacts.

WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR N.J. STATE PARKS: Let the chair of the Senate Environment Committee know that New Jersey needs to safeguard its precious public lands and environment for present and future generations. Off-road vehicle use would be better accommodated on private lands designated for that purpose. Write to Senator Henry P. McNamara, New Jersey State House P.O. Box 099, Trenton, NJ 08625-0099 For more information: contact Tom Gilbert, tgilbert@igc.org

WATER CONSERVATION, MASS.: Efforts underway in the State House to enact legislation that would provide up to $10 million over five years for water efficiency programs to promote water conservation are being held up in the Ways and Means Committee. The Water Resources Conservation and Efficiency Act (S.2006/H.4791) would establish a state water efficiency coordinator, and review state laws, regulations, and policy affecting protection of in-stream flows. The bill would also initiate pilot programs that can be duplicated in communities throughout the state. Water conservation can decrease water usage by nearly one third, thus reducing the need for new and larger wastewater treatment plants and drinking water treatment plants. Water conservation has the added benefit of not depleting water levels in our rivers and streams.

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP WATER CONSERVATION EFFORTS: Write to the chairs of the Ways and Means committees: Representative Paul Haley, Room 243, State House, Boston, MA 02133 and Senator Mark Montigny, Room 212, State House, Boston, MA 02133 as well as to your individual legislators stressing the importance of this bill.