Newly Introduced Bill Might Save Grasslands for Sportsmen and Women
Photo cover: A bipartisan coalition of U.S. House of Representatives members introduced a bill that could be a significant step toward grassland conservation in the 21st Century.
On Oct. 9, a bipartisan coalition of U.S. House of Representatives members introduced a bill that has the potential to be one of the most significant steps toward grassland conservation in the 21st Century.
The North American Grasslands Conservation Act, introduced by House members Nancy Mace (R-SC), Sharice Davids (D-KS), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Mike Thompson (D-CA) is designed to set the wheels in motion to protect America’s tallgrass, mixed grass and shortgrass prairies—more than 70% of which has disappeared.
Grasslands are said to have once made up one billion acres of the United States, or half of the landmass of the 48 contiguous states. An astonishing 50 million areas of grassland have been lost in the past decade alone, with the majority being converted to croplands and much of the rest lost to commercial and residential development.
Today, according to the World Wildlife Fund, grasslands are the most threatened and yet least protected ecosystems in the world, with only a few large, intact tracts remaining.
National Park Service ecologist Dr. Dorothy Borowy recently wrote that the disappearing grasslands create a dangerous domino effect in nature. “Plants are the basis of most food webs. So, if you diminish the diversity of plants, you’re going to affect everything connected to them,” she said. “The insects, the birds, the small mammals, the predators, everything will be impacted. Conserving and restoring grasslands is a vital step to safeguarding the myriad of species dependent on them.”
Among the species most impacted by these losses are upland birds. Bobwhite quail have seen a population decline of 85%, impacting generations of sportsmen and women to come, and causing a range of existential issues to farmers, ranchers and landowners.
The North American Grasslands Conservation Act will be highlighted by a voluntary, incentive-based program to fund conservation efforts like grassland management, restoration and easement. In addition, it will include dedicated funding to Tribal grasslands conservation, promoting indigenous ecological knowledge. Finally, the bill will take important steps toward mitigating climate change, including a pilot program for regenerative grazing.
The concept of a Grasslands Act was introduced in the 117th Congress by Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Michael Bennett (D-CO). This new iteration, in addition to adding the bipartisan element, has also been recrafted to more closely resemble the highly successful North American Waterfowl Conservation Act which, for the past 35 years, has used a similar voluntary, incentive-based model to conserve up to 32 million acres of wetland habitat and has proven highly successful in increasing populations of waterfowl and coastal birds.
“The United States has over 125 million acres of grasslands that are threatened, and right here in South Carolina, we see firsthand how important conservation is to the health and beauty of our natural ecosystems,” Mace said. “Our office has made a promise to preserve this beauty, not just for today but for future generations.”
“In Kansas, we have grassland prairies that are well known throughout the Great Plains for their beautiful landscapes and scenic hiking trails, but grasslands once covered millions of acres across North America, stretching from coast to coast,” Davids said. “Grasslands are vital to ranchers and producers, Tribes, and folks who love spending time outdoors. They’re critical habitat for countless species of birds, important pollinators and treasured animals like the bison. And they’re crucial to fighting the effects of climate change, bolstering our food security, and combatting extreme weather. I’m excited for this opportunity to highlight the protection of our grasslands and bipartisan solutions that build off of successful public-private partnerships.”
native wildlife—yet they remain endangered.
“Grasslands are vital to the livelihoods of our nation’s ranchers and the health of our native wildlife—yet they remain endangered. It’s great to join my colleagues to introduce the bipartisan North American Grasslands Conservation Act to invest in voluntary, incentive-based programs to help farmers, ranchers, Tribal Nations, sportsmen and women and state and local governments preserve, rehabilitate and responsibly manage our grasslands for generations to come,” Thompson said.
“Grasslands are among the most endangered ecosystems in the world, with over 70 percent of America’s tallgrass, mixed grass and shortgrass prairies now gone,” Fitzpatrick said. “Our grasslands are vital for the survival of farmers and rural communities across Pennsylvania and our nation, which is why I am championing this critical piece of bipartisan, bicameral legislation. By establishing a landowner-driven, incentive-based program and investing in restoration programs, the North American Grasslands Conservation Act will protect essential habitats that support our American farmers, ranchers and Tribal Nations and revitalize these critical ecosystems, ensuring they continue to sustain wildlife and rural communities for generations to come.”
The bill is the result of a highly cooperative effort that has received the endorsements of 45 leading regional and national conservancy organizations across the country, including the World Wildlife Fund, the American Bird Conservancy and The Nature Conservancy, to name a few.
The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership recently spoke out in favor of the measure and its impact on the hunting community. “Hunters are among the first to see the effects of habitat loss and degradation, and for decades we’ve seen populations of bobwhite quail, prairie chickens, pronghorn and other grassland wildlife suffer,” said Aaron Field, TRCP’s director of private lands conservation. “It’s long past time to replicate on grasslands the proven model of voluntary, incentive-based conservation that has boosted waterfowl populations for nearly 35 years. The North American Grasslands Conservation Act puts us on that path.”
To learn more about the North American Grasslands Act and what you can do to help, visit actforgrasslands.org and quailforever.org.
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John Kelly is the managing editor of The Virginia Sportsman. He is a writer and public relations professional based in Charlottesville, Virginia, whose work has appeared in the UVA Arts Magazine, Albemarle Magazine and USA Today, among other publications. John also works regularly throughout Central Virginia as a singer-songwriter and recently released an album of original songs titled “In Between.”
