skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Medical copays reduce health care access in MS prisons; Israel planted explosives in pagers sold to Hezbollah according to official sources; Serving looks with books: Libraries fight 'fast fashion' by lending clothes; Menhaden decline threatens Virginia's ecosystem, fisheries.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

JD Vance calls for toning down political rhetoric, while calls for his resignation grow because of his own comments. The Secret Service again faces intense criticism, and a right to IVF is again voted down in the US Senate.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Idaho Delegation, Supporters Gather to Protect Conservation Program

play audio
Play

Thursday, August 23, 2018   

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – Idaho's congressional delegation and other supporters of a federal conservation program gather at the South Fork of the Snake River Thursday to stress the need to save the Land and Water Conservation Fund before it expires.

Rep. Mike Simpson and staff for Sens. Jim Risch and Mike Crapo – all three lawmakers are Republicans – will be at the event celebrating the fund, which has been used to protect landscapes throughout Idaho since it was created in 1965.

Michael Whitfield, a member of the Land and Water Conservation Fund Coalition, says the South Fork of the Snake is a fitting place as the site of many projects funded by the program.

"It's, scenically, incredibly beautiful,” he states. “It's a major, world class fishery. It experiences probably half a million recreational visits a year with people who float that river to see all the wildlife and to enjoy the spectacular, native cutthroat trout fishery."

Whitfield says nearly every county in the state has benefited from the program, which also funds parks and recreational facilities such as soccer fields.

Idaho has received nearly $280 million since the Land and Water Conservation Fund was created. The Gem State's delegation has supported the fund in the past.

The fund expires on Sept. 30 unless Congress reauthorizes it.

Supporters of LWCF include many Idaho landowners. Whitfield says they use the fund to keep their land the way it is.

Whitfield adds there's growing urgency to ensure that the program is reauthorized, because many projects require coordination and certainty that funding will be available.

"The projects take time to negotiate,” he points out.
“They're always done with willing landowners on a voluntary basis. And they're making big decisions, which takes time and some assurance that the program will be there."

The program is funded with royalties from offshore oil and gas drilling, meaning it isn't supported by general taxpayer dollars.

Another measure in Congress would use those royalty payments to address the National Park Service maintenance backlog.

Whitfield says both can be supported, so his and other conservation groups would like to see both measures pass.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
According to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction's annual budget report, the state receives more than $1.10 billion in federal funding outside of funds from the child nutrition and COVID relief programs. (Michael Ireland/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

From gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson to Superintendent of Public Instruction hopeful Michele Morrow, some Republicans running for office have …


Social Issues

play sound

California is home to more than 181,000 people who are unhoused, with 75,000 in Los Angeles alone, so the Los Angeles Food Policy Council will host a …

Environment

play sound

Groups concerned about pollution and climate change are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a trio of bills dubbed the "make polluters pay" package…


Ohio is among 13 jurisdictions requiring Saturday and Sunday hours for early voting. (PX Media/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

This week, National Voter Registration Day was another timely reminder for Ohioans preparing for the 2024 general election. The latest reports from …

Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Self-Care Awareness Month and the American Heart Association in Missouri is urging caregivers to take some much-needed time for themselve…

Menhaden are forage fish species and filter feeders, each capable of filtering up to seven gallons of water per minute. (Photo of female Osprey with Menhaden/TRCP)

Environment

play sound

In Virginia's waters, the decline of a small but critically important fish is causing growing concern among conservation groups and fishermen alike…

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado voters will decide whether to change the state's constitution to ensure families have school choice as a fundamental right. Kallie Leyba…

Environment

play sound

By Claire Elise Thompson for Grist.Broadcast version by Kathryn Carley for New Hampshire News Connection reporting for the Grist-Public News Service C…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021