Summary Implementing catch shares in commercial-only fisheries can be a useful tool for managing harvest of marine fisheries. However, they are an inherently inappropriate tool for recreational-only and mixed-sector fisheries. In fisheries where there is a large and growing recreational sector, exclusive fishing rights proposals maximize benefits to the commercial fishing industry while ignoring and …
Introduction Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a progressive, fatal, degenerative neurological disease occurring in farmed and free-ranging deer, elk, caribou, and moose. The disease was first recognized in 1967 as a clinical ‘wasting’ syndrome of unknown cause in captive mule deer in Colorado. CWD belongs to the family of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies …
Summary Cited as one of the most pressing environmental challenges facing this generation, climate change represents an opportunity for sportsmen and women, the original conservationists, to reassert their role as leaders in supporting healthy ecosystems. By viewing a changing climate as a conservation challenge, the sportsmen’s community can continue to utilize management practices that have …
Summary In addition to the American System of Conservation Funding, some states have begun to seek alternative methods of funding for their fish and wildlife agencies. A conservation sales tax on all taxable goods is one such mechanism that states might consider implementing. This excise tax is primarily applied to sporting goods such as firearms …
Summary One important tool for protecting fish and wildlife habitat is a state-level tax credit for gifts of land for conservation or conservation easements. With a wide variety of implementation options, these programs can provide alternatives to development by providing landowners with financial incentives to conserve land. These lands benefit fish and wildlife populations and …
Summary Over the last few decades, rising costs for natural resource management and increased public utilization of these resources has led to the need for additional methods of funding for conservation. Dedicating lottery proceeds to funding conservation can assist with efforts such as increasing access to public lands, habitat and endangered species conservation, wildlife education, …
Summary In keeping with the present framework of the American System of Conservation Funding, a state-level sales tax on outdoor gear can provide an additional dedicated revenue source for agencies that manage both game and non-game species. Introduction Conservation funding in the United States is largely a “user pays – public benefits” structure in which …
Summary Similar to hunting and fishing licenses, many states now allow hunters to purchase Duck Stamps electronically. However, policies regarding the issuance of these stamps varies from state to state, and even in many states where the electronic sale of Duck Stamps is authorized it is still required that hunters print out and retain a …
Summary The 2018 Farm Bill expired in October 2023 and has since received two separate, year-long extensions. However, Congress has yet to pass the next iteration of this important legislation. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation is working with Congress to advance a Farm Bill with strong Conservation and Forestry Titles that benefit wildlife, fish, and their …
Summary Properly managed wildlife habitat is essential for supporting sustainable and healthy wildlife populations. Well-managed lands containvarious successional stages that provide a diversity of habitats capable of supporting a diversity of wildlife. On federal lands, however, young forests and other early seral habitats are often underrepresented. The most efficient method to improve wildlife habitat is …
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