Thank you for this opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee on Resource Conservation, Research, and Forestry to testify on private property rights and conservation. NWI is a private conservation organization that is dedicated to using sound, objective science for the wise management of natural resources with members in all 50 states and abroad. Our flagship publication is our journal, the NWI Resource, with a circulation of over 14,000. We have recently produced issues dedicated to endangered species and wetlands and are currently publishing an issue dedicated to land use and property rights all of which I would be happy to make available to members of the Committee. Of particular interest to NWI is the relationship between private ownership of land and conservation.
Private conservation is actually more important to the environment than government efforts.
Although the federal government owns vast amounts of land, private land is often richer in wildlife, plants and water. Much of this land is still owned by the many descendants of the original landowners who got the land when Maine became a state in 1820. In some cases, conservation is directly related to a business enterprise. Sea Lion Caves, a for-profit organization, protects the only mainland rookery of the Steller sea lion. It is a major tourist attraction on the Oregon coast and receives over 200,000 visitors annually.