RALEIGH, N.C. (May 20) – Salamanders, songbirds, mussels, turtles and other wildlife in North Carolina are getting strong support from the state’s congressional delegation in the budget for the 2005 fiscal year.

Commission biologists seine for tangerine darters in the upper Pigeon River.

Black skimmer on nest Media: Hi-res versions of these images may be downloaded here. Please credit the NC Wildlife Resources Commission.

Led by Rep. Robin Hayes (R), four N.C. representatives—Hayes, Cass Ballenger (R), Bob Etheridge (D) and David Price (D)—signed a letter sent to the Interior Appropriations Committee urging a $100 million budget for the State Wildlife Grants (SWG) program that supports the work of state wildlife agencies, such as the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.

“As a longtime environmental advocate, I have fought for legislation that protects public lands and endangered species and keeps our air and water clean,” said Price. “These [wildlife grant] programs are particularly important for the environmental preservation efforts in rapidly developing communities across our state.”

Sen. John Edwards (D) signed a similar letter for the senate’s budget leadership.

The SWG program provides funds to states for the research, management and conservation of wildlife “with the greatest conservation need, but not covered under other grant programs,” according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which administers the SWG program.

All states receive funds for sport fish and game management through the service’s Sport Fish Restoration program and Wildlife Restoration program. Funds for these programs are derived from taxes on hunting and fishing equipment sales. For fiscal year 2003-2004 North Carolina received $7.3 million dollars from these programs.

The service also provides funds for endangered-species research and management. Most of North Carolina’s fish and wildlife, however, fall outside the definitions of either a sport or endangered species. The SWG program, subject to annual appropriations, supports the conservation of these animals.
“SWG enables the faunal diversity and aquatic nongame program to set its own priorities,” said Tom Henson, the Commission’s faunal diversity coordinator. “In the past, we had to spend most federal money for work on endangered species. That meant we didn’t have the opportunity to survey and research more common species, like basking turtles.”

Congress first authorized the SWG program in fiscal year 2001. Since then, North Carolina’s allocation has ranged from $1.2 to $1.5 million per year. Ongoing SWG projects include a crayfish inventory, reptile surveys, black skimmer and common tern nesting research, native fish reintroduction and the preparation of a conservation plan for North Carolina. The Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan is a detailed document that will prioritize species’ needs and guide SWG spending in years to come.

See more information on the conservation plan here.

The SWG program has boosted the research, survey and management of North Carolina’s nongame species. Previously, the Commission relied on its Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Fund—voluntary contributions from North Carolinians through a line item on state tax returns, wildlife resources license plates and donations—as the backbone for this work. Now the fund provides the federally required matching dollars for SWG grant projects, essentially stretching each dollar from the fund into four dollars for planning projects and two dollars for implementation projects.

The Commission’s Faunal Diversity and Aquatic Nongame Program, established in 1983, works to coordinate species and habitat-protection efforts for wildlife that are not hunted, fished or trapped. The program strives to prevent more than 1,000 native nongame mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, mollusks and crustaceans from becoming endangered and to recover those already endangered.

The Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Fund is the primary source of state funds for the program and provides nearly all the state matching dollars for SWG grants. Since 1984, taxpayers have given $6,933,382 dollars for wildlife conservation through voluntary contributions via state tax returns, wildlife resources license plates and donations.

See more information on the Commission’s Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Program.

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