A little known but vitally important benefit of offshore drilling is being debated in Washington DC right now and I'd be obliged if you would call your representative about it, especially if they are Republican.
It's called the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and the money comes entirely from offshore oil and gas drilling. It's free money for conservation. $900,000,000, that's nine hundred million with an M. Two problems, the mandate has run out and even when the fund is in effect congress regularly steals money from the project. House Bill 1814 would make the fund permanent.
When you call your representative about 1814 two things are important to say. Make the Land and Water Conservation Fund permanent, and fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Of late votes in congress have split down party lines, they don't have to. Recently my Republican senator who hales from the oil producing part of our state voted against an amendment to return federal land to the states. This bill for the LWCF is strongly supported amongst all people in the western states, Republican representatives are feeling the heat. Politicians don't always vote only for money, money is only a path to reelection, enough engaged constituents can help any senator to come to Jesus.
The LWCF leverages it's purchases by buying the most crucial pieces of private land that allows access to even larger pieces of public land formerly blocked from public access. The LWCF also buys land in urban environs that formerly had none. A baseball or soccer field just down the street can give kids a healthy place to recreate that is invaluable. LWCFunding can also be used for the vital upkeep sorely needed on parks and forests. Just about any and everything on public lands can benefit from LWCF.
To give you an idea of the size of the potential funding if it were fully funded it would be about as large as the famous Pittman Robertson fund from gun and ammo sales. The money is small in oil company dollars but huge for conservation.
Disclosure, I'm a member of the fastest growing conservation organisation in the West, maybe the country. Our primary focus is on raising money to buy land in hopes of giving it to the US government to be put permanently into National Forest, Wilderness, Recreation Areas, etc. We believe that our government as flawed as it is, is a the best caretaker of our lands and that public lands should be open for the enjoyment of all. Some things government does much better than the private sector, public lands is one of those things. We raise money not by pestering people with junk mail or sending scary emotion grabbing mailers but by having banquettes and raffelling gear at the dinners. Over 6 million acres bought or put into easements or otherwise improved.
http://www.lwcfcoalition.org/...
