Kentucky Our Land, Our Water, Our Heritage

Kentucky Our Land, Our Water, Our Heritage LWCF Success in Kentucky LWCF Funded Places in Kentucky The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has provided funding to help protect some of Kentucky’s most special places and ensure Federal Units recreational access for hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities. • Big South Fork NRRA • Beaver Creek Wilderness Kentucky has received approximately $133.8 million in LWCF funding • Clarks River NWR over the past five decades, protecting places such as the Cumberland • Cumberland Gap NHP Gap National Historic Park, Daniel Boone National Forest, Clarks River • Daniel Boone NF National Wildlife Refuge and Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. Federal Total $47,600,000 Forest Legacy Program (FLP) grants are also funded under LWCF, to State Programs help protect working forests. The FLP cost-share funding supports Forest Legacy $13,200,000 timber sector jobs and sustainable forest operations while enhancing Program wildlife habitat, water quality and recreation. For example, the FLP contributed to places such as the Marrowbone Creek State Forest in Habitat $1,900,000 Metcalfe County and Knobs State Forest and Wildlife Management Conservation Area in Bullitt County. The FLP assists states and private forest owners (Sec. 6) to maintain working forest lands through matching grants for American $4,600,000 permanent conservation easement and fee acquisitions, and has Battlefield leveraged approximately $13.2 million in federal funds to invest in Protection Kentucky’s forests, while protecting air and water quality, wildlife Program habitat, access for recreation and other public benefits provided by ORLP $750,000 forests. Stateside $65,700,000 LWCF state assistance grants have further supported hundreds of projects across Kentucky’s state and local parks including Yellow Creek Total $133,800,000 Park in Daviess County, Barren River State Park in Barren County and Clear Creek Park in Shelby County. Additionally, the Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program (ORLP), which funds city park projects in economically disadvantaged areas, supported Bowling Green Riverwalk Park. Economic Benefits Active outdoor recreation is an important part of Kentucky’s economy. The Bureau of Economic Analysis has found that outdoor recreation generates $4.1billion in value added to Kentucky’s economy, 53,632 homegrown jobs, and accounts for 2.1% of the state’s economy. Further, the U.S. Census reports that each year 2.3 million people hunt, fish, or enjoy wildlife-watching in Kentucky, contributing over $1.9 billion in wildlife recreation spending to the state economy. Recreation at Big South Fork NRRA Credit: NPS Note - All approximate totals derived from appropriations bills Top: Beaver Creek Wilderness Credit: USFS - Forest Legacy Program & Sec. 6 funded from LWCF starting in 2004 LWCF in Kentucky Big Rivers Corridor Phase II The #1 ranked FLP project in FY 2012, Big Rivers Corridor Phase II project used $5.1 million in FLP funding leveraged by $5.1 million in funding from other sources to protect 4,285 acres of nationally recognized hunting land. Public hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing was allowed on this land, where public access had previously been prohibited. Such opportunities are limited in Kentucky, as 94% of the land is privately owned. Public access to this property based on a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Survey (2006) will generate an economic return to Kentucky of approximately $500,000 dollars and create at least 5 new jobs annually. Fiscal Year 2021 Agency Priority Project List for Kentucky LWCF is a simple idea: that a portion of offshore drilling Agency Project Amount Delegation fees should be used to protect Green River National Wildlife FWS $4,000,000 McConnell, Paul/ Comer important land and water for Refuge all Americans. These are not Big South Fork National River & NPS $1,037,000 McConnell, Paul/Rogers taxpayer dollars. Recreation Area* Unfortunately, for 55 years Mill Springs Battlefield National NPS $425,000 McConnell, Paul/Rogers the promise of LWCF was Monument broken as $22 billion was diverted from the program. The Great American Outdoors Act ended the diversion and ensures that LWCF ‘s permanently authorized $900 million is used for conservation and recreation projects each year. LWCF supports the acquisition of land and conservation easements to protect our national parks, wildlife refuges, forests, trails, and BLM sites, grants funds to the states for local and state park needs, protects critical wildlife Status of the Land and Water Conservation Fund habitat, watersheds and recreational access, and In 2019, permanent authorization of LWCF was secured as part of S. 47, the conserves working farms, John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act. Passage ranches and forestlands that of the Dingell Act ensures that LWCF no longer faces the uncertainty of enhance local economies. potential expiration, and that the unique structure and inflow of funds to LWCF is protected. Then in 2020 permanent full funding for LWCF was enacted into law in the Great American Outdoors Act– ensuring that each year the $900 million deposited into the LWCF account actually goes towards conservation and recreation priorities. Over the previous 55 years of the program, more than $22 billion was diverted from LWCF to other, unknown purposes. That meant that our public lands, waters, and historic sites were put in peril. As open space continues to shrink, LWCF investments become even more critical to providing the outdoor opportunities for all www.lwcfcoalition.org future generations. Click here to view a map of future LWCF projects. For more information: Left: Tour at Cumberland Gap NHP, Credit: NPS, Center: Daniel Boone NF, Credit USFS Amy Lindholm, [email protected] *multistate project.

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