Why It Matters: Congressionally designated Wilderness oftentimes reduces access for sportsmen and women and limits natural resource management capabilities in favor of preservation over conservation. Establishing Wilderness designations within the Big Cypress National Preserve (BCNP) would negatively impact science-based management practices to improve wildlife habitat as well as quality hunting opportunities in southern Florida.
Highlights:
- In 2022, the National Park Service (NPS) released a Supplemental Draft Backcountry Access Plan/Environmental Impact Statement for the BNCP.
- In response to the Supplemental Draft Plan, the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation (CSF) submitted comments supporting components of the plan that would have opened over 100 miles of trails for off road vehicles (ORVs) within Big Cypress, further improving access for hunters, and opposing the proposed 147,000 acres of Congressionally designated Wilderness.
- Earlier this month, Florida Legislative Sportsmen’s Caucus Co-Chairs Representative Danny Alvarez, Senator Jim Boyd, and Senator Jason Brodeur sent a letter to the Florida Congressional Delegation on Capitol Hill opposing Congressionally designated Wilderness within the BCNP.
Encompassing roughly 179,000 acres, the BCNP is a critical piece of public land that provides access for many sportsmen and women in south Florida. With such a large expanse of land, many backcountry areas of the BCNP are difficult to access without the use of ORVs. While it is encouraging to see the NPS consider opening a significant number of ORV trails, it is discouraging to see Wilderness designations being considered within the BCNP that would do nothing but negatively impact conservation efforts and access to outdoor recreation for youth, elderly, and those with mobility limitations.
The letter from the Caucus Co-Chairs stated: “Without the use of ORVs within the BCNP, natural resource managers would not be able to maintain or improve habitat through practices such as prescribed burning, invasive plant and animal control, and more, leading to habitat degradation over time. Habitat loss not only impacts game species and the opportunities they provide hunters, but it also impacts non-game species. A hands-off approach to management within the BCNP is counterproductive to implementing sound conservation practices and negatively impacts resource management and access and opportunity for Florida’s sportsmen and women.”
CSF applauds the leadership of the Caucus for standing up to protect public access in an incredibly important place for hunters and anglers in the Sunshine State who, in 2023 alone, generated over $90 million in conservation funding through the “user pays – public benefits” structure of the American System of Conservation Funding.
CSF will continue to work closely with the Caucus and our partners to oppose Congressionally designated Wilderness within the BCNP.
