On June 21, the Governor's Advisory Council For Hunting, Fishing and Conservation and the Governor's Youth Council for Hunting, Fishing and Conservation sent letters to state lawmakers urging them to support the Growing Greener III Environmental funding allocation from the federal American Rescue Plan.

"Investing in our state parks and forest infrastructure and conservation projects not only helps to maintain safe and reliable access to public hunting and fishing, but it will also help to support our state’s $12 billion-dollar outdoor economy."

"Enhancing Growing Greener represents an opportunity to not only invest in conservation projects that will put Pennsylvanians to work now but it is also an opportunity to invest in our future generation of hunters, anglers, boaters, birders, bikers, and hikers.

"Growing up hunting and fishing in our commonwealth is truly a great privilege and with it we embrace our responsibility to pass on our conservation heritage to the next generation."

Governor’s Advisory Council Letter

The text of the Governor's Advisory Council follows--

Hunting, Fishing, and Boating are foundational to conservation and the outdoor

recreation economy in Pennsylvania. The purchase of hunting and fishing licenses along with boat registrations and permits benefit communities throughout the commonwealth by

providing funding to help conserve and restore fish and wildlife habitat, as well as the land and water we all depend on.

Along with state game lands, our state parks and forests annually provide access to

millions of Pennsylvanians from every corner of the commonwealth and to many out of state visitors.

Each year Pennsylvania welcomes new participants to our sporting heritage. In fact, since 2019, hunting license sales in Pennsylvania have increased about 5 percent while fishing license sales increased about 20 percent, and boat registrations increased about 40 percent.

With so many new boaters, anglers, and hunters relying on our outdoor resources now is the perfect time to invest and address DCNR’s $1.4 billion maintenance backlog.

Investing in park and forest infrastructure not only benefits non-consumptive users such as hikers, bikers, and bird watchers – it also ensures safe roads and bridges for hunters and anglers to safely access public lands and waters.

Virtually all DCNR’s 2.2 million acres of state forestland and roughly 85 percent of

almost 300,000 acres of state parkland are open to hunting. What’s more, DCNR maintains

hundreds of miles of state forest roads allowing for 90 percent of the state forest system to be accessible within one-half mile of an open road.

With so much opportunity comes our responsibility to maintain the safety and

conditions of these areas. Many of these roads and bridges provide first responders quick access to remote areas in case of an emergency.

This critical infrastructure helps to attract hunters, anglers, and boaters to our state when they consider safe places to get out on public lands.

Additionally, our state’s anglers, boaters, communities, and businesses continue to lose recreational opportunity, access to nearby clean water, and economic opportunity due to the legacy of acid mine drainage from abandoned or poorly reclaimed coal mines.

Pollution from abandoned mines is a problem we pay for one way or another – either by investment in the cleanup today, or in lost opportunity for business and recreational spending now and in the future.

The great outdoors is big business in Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Bureau of

Economic Analysis – outdoor recreation generates $12 billion dollars annually. Hunting and fishing are important sectors of outdoor recreation.

According to a recent report from the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership on the economic contributions of outdoor recreation in PA – nearly 2 million hunters and anglers spent more than $1.6 billion dollars pursuing their passions in Pennsylvania during 2020.

The report further states “Spending by hunters and anglers supported nearly 30,000 jobs which paid more than $1.4 billion in salaries and wages in 2020. That spending generated over $400 million in local, state, and federal tax revenue.”

Enhancing Growing Greener represents a significant opportunity to restore and

maintain the infrastructure hunters, anglers, and boaters from across the commonwealth and beyond depend on to pursue their outdoor passions in Pennsylvania.

Not only do these types of projects improve infrastructure while conserving our natural resources, but they also improve the quality of life of Pennsylvanians and attract outdoor businesses to come to Pennsylvania.

Additionally, many of these projects are “shovel-ready” and will put Pennsylvanians to work immediately.

For those reasons we encourage you to work with your colleagues to enhance the

Growing Greener program for the benefit of sportsmen and women in Pennsylvania.

Kindly,

Derek Eberly, Council Director

Click Here for a copy of the letter.

Youth Council

The text for the Youth Council letter follows--

The purpose of the Governor’s Youth Council for Hunting, Fishing, and Conservation is

to identify effective strategies for engaging younger generations in the conservation and preservation of Pennsylvania’s natural resources and the enhancement of the Commonwealth’s hunting and fishing heritage.

Recognizing that conserving Pennsylvania’s natural resources helps to make our state not only a great place to learn to hunt and fish but also a great place to attend school and start a career, we support enhancing the Growing Greener program.

Investing in our state parks and forest infrastructure and conservation projects not only helps to maintain safe and reliable access to public hunting and fishing, but it will also help to support our state’s $12 billion-dollar outdoor economy.

Virtually all DCNR’s 2.2 million acres of state forestland and roughly 85 percent of

almost 300,000 acres of state parkland are open to hunting. What’s more, DCNR maintains

hundreds of miles of state forest roads allowing for 90 percent of the state forest system to be accessible within one-half mile of an open road.

Robust outdoor resources like well-maintained state parks, forests, game lands, and

waterways are among the reasons young people decide to stay in Pennsylvania or even relocate to study, train, and start careers here.

Enhancing Growing Greener represents an opportunity to not only invest in

conservation projects that will put Pennsylvanians to work now but it is also an opportunity to invest in our future generation of hunters, anglers, boaters, birders, bikers, and hikers.

Growing up hunting and fishing in our commonwealth is truly a great privilege and with it we embrace our responsibility to pass on our conservation heritage to the next generation.

Please work with your colleagues to consider enhancing the Growing Greener program

for the benefit of future sportsmen and women in Pennsylvania.

Kindly,

Elizabeth Bruner, Council President

Click Here for a copy of the letter.

For more information, visit the Governor's Advisory Council For Hunting, Fishing and Conservation webpage.  Questions should be directed to Derek Eberly, Director, Governor's Advisory Council for Hunting, Fishing and Conservation, 717-705-0793 or deeberly@pa.gov. 

Take Action Now!

-- Bipartisan Group Of Lawmakers, Hunters, Anglers, Farm, Environmental, Recreation Groups All Working Together, Down To The Wire, To Bring Home A Win On Growing Greener III Funding [PaEN]

Related Articles This Week:

-- Chesapeake Bay Program Released Results Showing PA Achieved Only 22% Of 2025 Nitrogen Reduction Goal, 45% of Sediment, 48% Of Phosphorus  [PaEN]

-- Bay Journal: As 2025 Approaches, Chesapeake Bay Cleanup Goal Grows More Elusive - By Karl Blankenship

-- Bicycle Coalition Of Greater Philadelphia: Call To Action - Advocate For Growing Greener III Funding

-- Inquirer Guest Essay: How To Fund Public Parks And Wild Places In PA [Growing Greener III Funding] - By Suzanne Biemiller, Audubon Mid-Atlantic

-- LancasterOnline Guest Essay: It’s Time For Historic Investments In PA Parks, Trails, Forests, Clean Water - By Steve Stroman

-- Post-Gazette - Salena Zito: Families Priced Out Of Making Vacation Memories [But PA State Parks Are There, Free, Close To Home For Recreation]

-- Erie Times: PA Has $10 Billion Burning A Hole In Its Pocket, Should It Be Spent Now, And If So, How?  [Growing Greener III Included]

-- Independent Fiscal Office: FY 2021-22 Revenue $48.15 Billion, $6.24 Billion Above Estimates; FY 2022-23 Revenue $42.32 Billion

-- 2-Year Effort To Restore Plunketts Creek In Lycoming County Recognized With Governor's Award For Environmental Excellence  [PaEN]

-- Doc Fritchey Chapter TU Setting The Pace In Restoring PA Coldwater Resources In Central PA  [PaEN]

-- Lancaster County Approves $3.4 Million In Federal American Rescue Plan Funding To Support Lancaster Clean Water Partners Projects  [PaEN]

[Posted: June 21, 2022]

6/27/2022