$110 Million For Waterfowl Included In Water Bond Ballot Measure
Sacramento, CA – -(AmmoLand.com)- After more than 3 years of lobbying efforts, the California Outdoor Heritage Alliance (COHA) has succeeded in including $110 million for waterfowl and wetland habitat conservation efforts in a statewide bond measure that, with the Governor’s expected signature, will appear on the November 2, 2010 ballot.
COHA was pleased to work with its founding member, California Waterfowl, as well as its conservation partners, Ducks Unlimited and the Grasslands Water District, to include this important funding as part of an overall $11.14 billion water bond package.
The measure, entitled the “Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2010”, includes language COHA helped draft which calls for “at least $100 million” to be allocated to the Wildlife Conservation Board for the purchase of water rights and water conveyance infrastructure for wildlife refuges and habitat areas under the federal Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA). These waterfowl habitat areas include Central Valley National Wildlife Refuges, state Wildlife Management Areas and private duck clubs within the Grasslands Resource Conservation District in Merced County – areas which provide significant hunting opportunity for waterfowl, pheasant and other game birds.
The measure also includes COHA written language which would provide an additional $10 million for private lands wetland conservation programs administered by the Department of Fish and Game – including the California Waterfowl Habitat Program (i.e. Presley Program) – that offer financial incentives to duck clubs and other private landowners to protect and enhance the wildlife values of their property.
COHA wishes to thank Senator Dave Cogdill (R-Fresno), the author of the bond measure, as well as Senator Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) and Assembly Members Anna Caballero (D-Salinas) and Tom Berryhill (R-Modesto), for their considerable efforts to include our funding provisions. To take effect, the measure must be approved by the California electorate on November 2010 statewide ballot.
About:
The California Outdoor Heritage Alliance is a 501(c) 4 non-profit political advocacy organization dedicated solely to the promotion of wildlife and the protection of our hunting heritage. COHA professional staff is active at the California State Legislature, Congress, State Fish and Game Commission, State and Federal resource agencies and all other political arenas where decisions are made which may impact wildlife management, habitat conservation, wildlife program funding, hunting access and opportunity, and your ability to purchase and possess sporting arms and munitions. COHA was created in early 2006 by the California Waterfowl Association. For more information on COHA and its efforts, visit their website at www.outdoorheritage.org