GAITHERSBURG, MD, October 13, 2021 --- The Izaak Walton League of America recommends a number of common-sense considerations to amplify conservation practices required to achieve the goal of conserving 30 percent of the nation’s lands and waters by the year 2030, also known as 30x30.
In addition to its 100-year history of shaping national conservation policy, the Izaak Walton League continues to serve a unique role in promoting local community-based conservation and citizen science in the United States.
The League joins other sporting-conservation groups in the Hunt Fish 30x30 Coalition in submitting formal recommendations to the Biden Administration “America the Beautiful” 30x30 initiative.
Statement from Jared Mott, Izaak Walton League of America
“The success of the administration’s goal of conserving 30 percent of America’s land and waters by 2030 hinges on knowing where we started and being able to demonstrably track our progress with the American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas. The recommendations in this document are common-sense considerations that will amplify the outstanding conservation practices being implemented on public and private lands and waters today so they can grow to the scale needed to achieve our shared goals of combatting climate change with natural solutions, protecting wildlife and biodiversity and safeguarding clean air and water for all Americans.”
The recommendations highlight priorities of the sporting-conservation community as they relate to the Administration’s forthcoming American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas which will serve as a measure of conservation and restoration progress to date.
Recommendations submitted to President Biden’s interagency working group reflect the priorities first outlined in the Hunt Fish 30x30 Coalition’s “Hunting and Fishing Community Statement on the 30x30 Initiative” that was developed in response to “30x30” legislation introduced in 2020. In that statement, which has been signed by 66 sporting-conservation groups, the Coalition highlights the role sportsmen and women have played in the conservation of fish, wildlife and natural ecosystems in the U.S.
Recognizing this history of conservation successes, the current recommendations present an opportunity to advance pragmatic, successful conservation efforts while recognizing many existing efforts that have, to date, been largely overlooked relative to this initiative.
Key priorities of the recommendations include:
- Clearly defining “conservation” to support the active management and sustainable use of our nation’s public trust fish and wildlife resources.
- Collaborating closely with entities devoted to achieving measurable biodiversity conservation objectives, including:
- State fish and wildlife management agencies,
- Regional fish and wildlife management bodies,
- Members of the sporting-conservation community,
- The more than 500 federally recognized Native American tribes, and
- Private landowners through voluntary, incentive-based opportunities.
- Recognizing and including all efforts directly contributing to biodiversity conservation in the forthcoming American Conservation and Stewardship Atlas, including those on lands subject to multiple uses.
See Coalition letter to Biden administration, October 13, 2021: Read the recommendations.
Since its founding in 1922, the Izaak Walton League has led successful efforts focused on clean air and water, healthy wildlife habitat and natural resource conservation for future generations. Today, the League plays a unique role in supporting local community-based conservation, citizen science and shaping national policy. Visit www.iwla.org.
Contacts:
Jared Mott, Conservation Director, jmott@iwla.org, 301-548-0150 ext. 224
Michael Reinemer, Communications Director, mreinemer@iwla.com, 301-548-0150 ext. 224, 703-966-9574