NWSA Presents: A Webinar - The National Forest System Trails Stewardship Act of 2016

Wildernessalliance.org

Congress passed the National Forest System Trail Stewardship Act in November 2016.  NWSA is proud to present this webinar about this new Act and its implications for the wilderness stewardship community. This Act has important ramifications for wilderness stewardship groups as it addresses volunteer liability, encourages increased volunteer and partner cooperation and coordination, and has the potential for increases in trail maintenance work on National Forest System trails.

Come learn about the Act, it's key components, deliverables, and deadlines.  Learn how you can influence decisions on where trail maintenance is prioritized. A short survey will be administered to collect feedback to deliver to the Forest Service about the creation of trail maintenance priority areas.

This webinar will be held Tuesday, February 7th, at 2:00 pm Mountain Time. Space is limited so sign up today. First come-first served with a limit of 100 seats. Access information will be forwarded by Monday, February 6th.
To sign up: Send an email to randy@wildernessalliance.org with your interest to attend.

The Big Freeze: What Trump's Hiring Suspension Means for Public Lands

MensJournal.com - Full Article

By Ben Radding

Widespread hiring freezes hit most federal agencies on Monday (excepting the military). The stated goal of the order is to "reduce the size of the Federal Government's workforce through attrition." In other words? It may be here to stay.

For the Department of Interior, which oversees most public lands, this likely means there will be no new employees to aid in the $12.5 billion maintenance backlog that Ryan Zinke said he'd make a priority when he took control. And while National Parks have never been more popular (with some 300 million visitors in 2015), resources allocated for conservation and land management are at record lows — meaning the new hiring freeze could have the unintended consequences when it comes to camping and hiking, mountain-biking, and paddling on public lands. Even hunting and fishing may be affected.

"There's a sense that government is bloated and inefficient, and we can save money and reduce government interference on everyday Americans' lives," says Whit Fosburgh, president and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. "Now, there may be bloated agencies out there, but if you look at conservation funding in this country, the exact opposite is true. In the late '70s, conservation funding was about 2.5 percent of the federal budget, and today it’s about 1 percent."

Will Rogers, president and CEO of the Trust for Public Lands agrees: "Congress has not stepped up with what I would say are the expectations of the public when it comes to maintaining and taking care of our public lands. So that’s where we’re starting. A hiring freeze is only going to make it worse."

Our 500 million-plus acres of public lands, about one-fifth of the landmass of the United States, are managed by federal employees and contractors who manage grazing permits, trail maintenance, recreational visitation, oil and gas permits, fire suppression, timber issues, road building, and wilderness management, among many, many other tasks. The Bureau of Land Management, a department inside the DOI, is itself in charge of roughly 300 million acres. It has about 30,000 employees. That's around 50 square miles to manage per employee...

Read more here:
http://www.mensjournal.com/adventure/articles/what-trumps-hiring-freeze-means-for-the-department-of-interior-w463163

Summer 2017 WSP Grant Program Applications now available

Wildernessalliance.org

WSP Grant Info

The National Wilderness Stewardship Alliance is pleased to announce a continuation of the partnership with the Forest Service to bring our partner members the Wilderness Stewardship Performance (WSP) activity grants for the Summer 2017.

What is the WSP Grant Program

Wilderness Stewardship Performance is the suite of activities which the Forest Service uses to measure their wilderness stewardship accomplishment. This grant program is for wilderness stewardship volunteer organizations to support wilderness stewardship activities that contribute to overall improvement in wilderness stewardship performance scores for individual wilderness areas.

NWSA and the Forest Service are pleased to offer this opportunity for wilderness stewardship groups to assist the Forest Service in meeting their wilderness stewardship performance goals.  We are hoping that the success of this grant program will lead to its further expansion in the future.

Summer WSP 2017 Grant Program Details

The application period for Summer 2017 WSP Grants is now open.  Approximately $180,000 is available to be granted during the Summer 2017, for work completed May 2017 through September 2017.   Grants will be in the $2,000 - 20,000 dollar range.  
Information about this session of the WSP Grant Award program can be found in the NWSA Summer 2017 WSP Grant FAQ's.
The application period ends March 10th, 2017.  Click here for the application.

Also included in the application package is a Budget Form.  A letter of support from the affected Forest Service Office is also required.

All applicants must be members in good standing of NWSA.
 
Any additional questions can be addressed to randy@wildernessalliance.org. 

Good luck to all that apply.

For more information, see:
http://www.wildernessalliance.org/wsp_grant_info

Texas billionaire brothers reach out to Idaho leaders; one sale for access in the works

Idahostatesman.com

January 23 2017
By Rocky Barker
rbarker@idahostatesman.com

Representatives for two Texas billionaires who have purchased more than 200,000 acres of land in Idaho have reached out to state and county leaders to improve relations.

Representatives for DF Development, the Cisco, Texas, company owned by Farris and Dan Wilks, met with House Speaker Scott Bedke and Idaho Department of Lands Director Tom Schultz in November.

And Valley County is about to complete the purchase of a 4.2-acre parking lot and trailhead owned by DF Development.

The parking lot will serve snowmobilers, four-wheelers, mountain bikers, horseback riders and others using the public trail system between Smith’s Ferry and Cascade. The purchase is expected to close in February...

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/letters-from-the-west/article128240494.html#storylink=cpy

Wyoming Senate president kills public lands transfer bill

Trib.com - Full Article

Laura Hancock 307-266-0581, Laura.Hancock@trib.com
Jan 20, 2017

CHEYENNE — Wyoming Senate President Eli Bebout said Friday that he is killing a public lands transfer constitutional amendment bill that rattled sportsmen who warned the resolution would have led to eventual privatization and blocked access to the terrain.

“I’ve given a lot of thought to the public lands initiative,” said Bebout, a Riverton Republican said. “And what I’m going to do is, I’m going to not assign that bill (to a committee.) I’m going to kill it. But there’s a lot of moving parts in that. I think the message that a lot of people believe out there... really isn’t what it’s about. I think we’ve lost that message.”

The senator made the announcement hours after President Donald Trump was inaugurated. The state will work with the administration to more collaboratively manage the land, Bebout said.

“Starting today, from day one, leadership of the Wyoming Legislature is committed to working with the Trump administration and our congressional delegation to develop a solution that will ensure public lands are managed for multiple use and available to benefit all Wyoming residents,” Bebout said...

Read more here:
http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/govt-and-politics/wyoming-senate-president-kills-public-lands-transfer-bill/article_88bfb04b-6449-539d-8e70-081d781da35d.html

House opens door for transfer of federal lands: Will Trump play ball?

Mcclathyde.com - Full Article

January 12 2017

By Stuart Leavenworth
sleavenworth@mcclatchydc.com

WASHINGTON

Emboldened by the change of administration, GOP lawmakers are quietly making moves that would permit a potentially vast transfer of federal land to states and other entities.

On a party line vote last week, the House of Representatives approved rule changes that would expedite such transfers, alarming environmental and recreation groups that have long called for “public lands to stay in public hands.”

President-elect Donald Trump and his pick for Interior secretary, Rep. Ryan Zinke, a Montana Republican, have both said they oppose turning federal lands over to states or localities. Even so, Zinke joined his party in approving the Jan. 3 rules package, raising questions about how Trump might act if lands transfer legislation were to reach his desk.

“I’m not very confident. I am very worried,” said Sharon Buccino, a lawyer who directs the land and wildlife program at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an advocacy group. “Both Trump and Zinke say they oppose the transfer of federal land, but when it came to vote last week, Zinke voted to make it easier to do land transfers...”

Read more here: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/congress/article126237899.html#storylink=cpy

ELCR: Working together to save our horse lands

ELCR.org

Become a Conservation Member today

As members of the equine community, the future of the equestrian landscape is in our hands. 

Land is saved locally, so it's imperative that horsemen and horse enthusiasts act as stewards of horse lands in their own communities. Being aware of threats and knowing how to address them allows us to ensure that future generations can enjoy access to the equestrian landscapes and lifestyle that we enjoy. Participation in our Conservation Member Program allows you to actively demonstrate your support for equine land conservation.

Join or renew your membership for 2017 today!

ELCR Conservation Membership dues help support educational program and one-on-one technical assistance that help individuals and organizations keep land open for horses in their communities. Specifically, your membership dues help support programs and services such as: 

• Articles, videos and other educational resources in six equine land conservation topic areas made available free to the public on our website, www.elcr.org
• Development of templates, sample letters, guides, and other tactical tools to help groups effectively engage in local land use planning
• Access to best practices and guidance for managing conversations and relationships with private landowners and public land stakeholders in order to create or support access for horses and horse-related use
• Access to one-on-one counseling and technical assistance for specific local equine land loss issues
• Access to webinars covering issues such as building and maintaining sustainable trails, conservation easements, planning and zoning issues and best management practices and more!

It will take many voices to save our cherished equine places and spaces - won't you add yours today!