The worldwide conservation group, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is urging Congress to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Spokesman Mark Holyoak explains why the RMEF is so firmly behind this action in Congress.

“If you were just to walk outside and look around, chances are you’d see a landscape project, a recreational facility that’s been positively affected by the Land and water Conservation Fund,” said Holyoak. “This money comes from the royalties paid to the government for rights to drill on the outer continental shelf, and then those dollars go directly to conservation. This fund will expire at the end of September.”

Holyoak said there are dozens of projects that the RMEF has been a partner with that have benefitted from the LWCF.

“We’ve had 80 different projects that the RMEF has been behind with various partners that have used LWCF funding that’s benefitted over 152,000 acres of wildlife habitat,” he said. “We’re urging all our members and the general public to contact their representatives in Washington to fully fund the LWCF, so we can have these great landscapes going forward.”

The royalties bring in $900 million annually, most of which is diverted to other federal programs.

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