Newsgroups: bit.listserv.biosph-l
Date:         Sat, 7 Nov 1992 18:37:46 EST
Reply-To:     "Norman C. Saunders" <NYS@NIHCU.BITNET>
From:         "Norman C. Saunders" <NYS@NIHCU.BITNET>
Subject:      Three F&WS Press Releases

Fish and Wildlife Service
For Release: November 2, 1992

Hugh Vickery  202-208-5634


            Interior Secretary Lujan Announces $242 Million
              Will Go To State Fish And Wildlife Agencies


     Secretary of  the Interior  Manuel Lujan today announced that State
fish and wildlife agencies are to share in more than $242 million in ex-
cise taxes paid by America's hunters and anglers.  The agencies will use
the money  for land  acquisition, habitat  improvement, research, educa-
tion, and other conservation programs benefitting wildlife.

     The funds  are distributed through preliminary apportionments under
two Federal  Aid programs administered by the Interior Department's U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.

     "For more  than 50  years, hunters  and fishermen  have footed  the
lion's share  of the  bill for  our Nation's  conservation efforts, con-
tributing to fish and wildlife projects in all 50 states," Lujan said.

     The Federal  Aid in  Wildlife  Restoration  Act  (Pittman-Robertson
Act), signed in 1937, and the Federal Aid in Sports Fish Restoration Act
(Dingell-Johnson Act),  signed in  1950, collectively  have raised  more
than $2.2 billion.

     "The money that these sportsmen and -women pay in taxes is vital to
ensuring future  generations of  Americans get  the same chance to enjoy
the great  outdoors and the majesty of nature as we do today," said Ser-
vice Director John Turner.

     The funds  are distributed  to the  states for projects proposed by
the states and approved by the Service.  Federal Aid funds pay for up to
75 percent  of the  cost of  each project while the states contribute at
least 25 percent of the cost.

     The preliminary apportionment for sport fish restoration for fiscal
year 1993  totals $147,500,000.   The  funding results from a 10-percent
excise tax on fishing equipment and a 3-percent tax on electric trolling
motors and  sonar fish finders.  The "Wallop-Breaux" legislation of 1984
increased the  tax base  for sport fish restoration to include a portion
of the  Federal fuels tax and import duties on fishing tackles and plea-
sure boats.

     Distribution of sport fish restoration funds to the states is based
on the  land and water area and the number of fishing license holders in
each state.  Wildlife restoration funds are made available based on land
area and the number of hunting license holders in each state.  Distribu-
tion of  hunter education  funds is  based on the relative population of
each state.

  ====================================================================

This press  release has  been brought to you compliments of The Osprey's
Nest, a  computer bulletin  board for birders and other amateur natural-
ists in  the Washington,  DC area.   The Osprey's Nest may be reached 24
hours per day at 301-989-9036 and answers the phone at 300 to 9600 baud.

The Osprey's  Nest is not associated in any way with the U.S. Department
of the  Interior or  with the  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Opinions
expressed in  this press release are not necessarily those of the system
operator of The Osprey's Nest.





Fish and Wildlife Service
For Release: November 2, 1992

Janet Chesky  202-208-5634


         Federal Duck Stamp Contest Activities Begin November 8


     More than  600 waterfowl paintings by artists from across the coun-
try go  on display  November 8  in Washington,  DC, as 1992 Federal Duck
Stamp Contest  activities get underway.  An expert panel of wildlife art
judges will  select a  single entry which will become the design for the
1993-94 Federal  Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp, commonly
called the  "Duck Stamp."   The  Interior  Department's  U.S.  Fish  and
Wildlife Service will host the annual event November 8-10.

     Considered one  of the  world's premier  wildlife art competitions,
the Duck  Stamp Contest attracts unknown as well as established artists.
This year  the entrants  come from  49 states, the District of Columbia,
and the Virgin Islands.

     Recognized as  one of  the most innovative and successful conserva-
tion efforts,  the Federal Duck Stamp Program has raised $414 million to
acquire over  4 million  acres of  wetlands since its inception in 1934.
Many of  the Nation's  485 National Wildlife Refuges have been purchased
entirely, or in part, with funds from the sale of Duck Stamps.

     Waterfowl hunters  16 years of age or older are required to have in
their possession  a signed, current Federal Duck Stamp, but purchases of
the $15  stamp are  not limited  to hunters--Duck Stamps have become in-
creasingly popular  among stamp  collectors, wildlife artists, conserva-
tionists, and others.

     "The Federal  Duck Stamp  Contest is more than just an art competi-
tion," said  Fish and Wildlife Service Director John Turner.  "It repre-
sents the  commitment of  Americans as a people, and hunters in particu-
lar, to conserve waterfowl and their habitats for future generations."

     Eligible species  for this  year's competition  include the  Canada
goose, and  canvasback, greater scaup, mallard, and pintail ducks.  Min-
nesota hosts the largest number of entrants with 49, while California is
a close second with 47.  Pennsylvania is third with 35.

     Judging of  entries will take place November 9-10 in the Department
of the  Interior Auditorium,  1849 C  Street, N.W., Washington, DC.  The
public can view the entries on November 8, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Novem-
ber 9,  from 10:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.; and on November 10, from 9:00 a.m.
to 2:30 p.m.  Judging will conclude around noon on November 10, when the
contest winner will be announced by Secretary of the Interior Manuel Lu-
jan.

     Anyone can  win the  contest, and rewards are substantial.  Winning
artists receive  significant monetary  gains through the private sale of
limited-edition prints  of their design.  The Federal Government's award
to the winner is a panel of the Duck Stamp.

  ====================================================================

This press  release has  been brought to you compliments of The Osprey's
Nest, a  computer bulletin  board for birders and other amateur natural-
ists in  the Washington,  DC area.   The Osprey's Nest may be reached 24
hours per day at 301-989-9036 and answers the phone at 300 to 9600 baud.

The Osprey's  Nest is not associated in any way with the U.S. Department
of the  Interior or  with the  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Opinions
expressed in  this press release are not necessarily those of the system
operator of The Osprey's Nest.





Fish and Wildlife Service
For Release: November 5, 1992

Hugh Vickery  202-208-5634


             Legislation Signed By President Bush Will Add
      Vital Bottomland Habitat To National Wildlife Refuge System


     Nearly 41,000 acres of nature's most productive wildlife habitat in
Arkansas will be added to the National Wildlife Refuge System as part of
a plan by President Bush for a land exchange between the Federal govern-
ment and the Potlatch Corporation of San Francisco, California.

     Under the  exchange legislation  proposed by  the Department of the
Interior and  signed into  law by the president on November 2, 1992, the
Interior Department's  U.S. Fish  and Wildlife Service will receive bot-
tomland hardwood  acreage located  along the White River between the ex-
isting Cache  River National  Wildlife Refuge  and White  River National
Wildlife Refuge.

     "This land  contains some  of the most productive fish and wildlife
habitat found  in North  America," said Secretary of the Interior Manuel
Lujan.  "It is a relatively untouched river basin area important to win-
tering waterfowl  and a home to bald eagles and a number of other endan-
gered and threatened species."

     In return for the Arkansas land, Potlatch will receive 17,625 acres
of Federal  land owned by the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Man-
agement in Idaho.  These lands, which Potlatch will manage for sustained
timber harvest,  do not  have significant  wildlife or  wetland  values.
Much of  the land  is in scattered pockets within larger blocks of mixed
Federal and  private ownership.   Management of such scattered tracts is
difficult.

     "This consolidation  of various  inholdings and  smaller tracts  of
land mirrors  a basic  tenet of  effective land  management and wildlife
conservation.   This exchange  agreement will  make the highest and best
use of these lands for present and future generations of both people and
wildlife," said Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks Mike
Hayden.

     As part  of the legislation, Potlatch is to transfer 1,170 acres it
holds in  Idaho to the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.  Of
this land,  279 acres  will be given to the Bureau of Land Management to
provide public  access to  recreational opportunities  in the Lolo Creek
Management Area.  Another 891 acres will be transferred to the U.S. For-
est Service,  680 acres for addition to the Grandmother Mountain Wilder-
ness Study Area, and 211 acres for public recreation.

     "This deal  is a  win-win  proposition  for  everyone,"  said  John
Turner, Director  of the  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  "We receive a
large contiguous tract of the highest-quality wetland and wildlife habi-
tat at no direct cost to the taxpayer while Potlatch receives solid tim-
ber lands having a lesser wildlife conservation value."

     The new  land will  be added to the Cache River and White River Na-
tional Wildlife Refuges, thus making it possible for the Service to man-
age a  total of  more than 170,000 acres of river and adjoining wetlands
for wildlife.

     The Arkansas  land consists  of largely  undisturbed oxbows, lakes,
and riverine areas that flood early and consistently, even in dry years,
providing excellent--and  reliable--waterfowl habitat.   An estimated 10

percent of  the entire mallard population in the Nation's Central Flyway
winters on these lands.

     Existing federal  and state  wetlands in the area have already been
designated as Wetlands of International Importance under the RAMSAR Con-
vention, an international agreement to protect wetlands considered to be
of global  importance.   It is  anticipated the  newly acquired wetlands
will also receive this designation once the exchange is completed.

     The Service  is to  prepare a comprehensive management plan for the
two existing refuges and the new land within the next two years.  During
that time,  hunting on  the acquired  Potlatch lands will continue under
state seasons  and bag limits.  The law provides that the exchange is to
take place within 60 days.

  ====================================================================

This press  release has  been brought to you compliments of The Osprey's
Nest, a  computer bulletin  board for birders and other amateur natural-
ists in  the Washington,  DC area.   The Osprey's Nest may be reached 24
hours per day at 301-989-9036 and answers the phone at 300 to 9600 baud.

The Osprey's  Nest is not associated in any way with the U.S. Department
of the  Interior or  with the  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Opinions
expressed in  this press release are not necessarily those of the system
operator of The Osprey's Nest.
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU