Number: 1998-07
WHEREAS, nearly 70 percent of the land in America is in private hands, and half of America’s land is owned and managed by farmers, ranchers, and their families; and
WHEREAS, more than two-thirds of America’s forests are in private hands; and
WHEREAS, nearly 75 percent of America’s remaining wetland acres are on private land, and represent some of the most critical habitat for fish and wildlife in our country; and
WHEREAS, roughly 90 percent of species listed under the Endangered Species Act rely on habitat found on private and other non-federal land; and
WHEREAS, other game and non-game species of fish and wildlife rely extensively on habitat found on private lands, and live in ecosystems dominated by privately-held land; and
WHEREAS, our natural resources are best protected where individual landowners, imbued with a sustainable land stewardship ethic, have access to adequate financial resources and the knowledge base to enable them to protect the natural resources on their land; and
WHEREAS, the ownership of land is a legal right which carries with it a moral responsibility for landowners to protect the land for future generations, and to refrain from uses of the land that would harm their neighbors or damage our air, water, land, wildlife, or other natural resources; and
WHEREAS, the National Wildlife Federation has a long and proud tradition of support for efforts which help individuals understand and improve the wildlife habitat on their own land and in their communities;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the National Wildlife Federation in its Annual Meeting assembled March 19-22, 1998, in Alexandria, Virginia, affirms its support for government and non-government programs that contribute to the strengthening of a sustainable land stewardship ethic in the United States on America’s private lands, including incentive-based initiatives like the Conservation Reserve Program, Wetlands Reserve Program, Environmental Quality Incentives Program, Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program, Conservation Farm Option, Stewardship Incentive Program, Forest Legacy Program and other USDA farm conservation programs, incentives for landowners to conserve and protect wildlife habitat including habitat for endangered species, and other federal, state, local, and private incentive-based programs. The Federation supports active citizen involvement, funding for the implementation of and equitable distribution of benefits, in implementing such government programs; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the same sustainable land stewardship ethic should govern the management of our Nation’s public lands, lands which belong to all of us as Americans. The Federation reaffirms its support for long-term management of public lands designed to restore and protect these lands, which will provide for well-managed land use that is sustainable over the long term and consistent with the designated purpose, which recognizes and provides for hunting, fishing, trapping, recreation, and other multiple uses where appropriate, and which recognizes the links between management of public land and management of private land.