After years of detours and debate, the state of Wyoming sold 640 acres of wildlife-rich land, adding what’s known as the Kelly parcel to Grand Teton National Park.
Private donations played a key role, as did the nation’s most effective (and least known) conservation and recreation law: the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Conservation requires funding
Since 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has been the little engine that could. It’s the source of funding for national parks and wildlife refuges, for state parks and forests, for local parks and playgrounds.
In this case, the parcel of land, which previously had been proposed for commercial development, was purchased for $100 million, with much of the funding supplied by the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
The new addition is important to migrating pronghorn, mule deer and other wildlife.
You can get more details about the the Kelly parcel and the Grand Teton National Park here.
Bipartisan support
It’s practical, effective conservation stories like this one, taking place in every state and nearly every county, that result in bipartisan support for the Land and Water Conservation Fund. A big thank you to all the lawmakers who permanently renewed the program in 2019 and later put a lock on its funding in 2020.
You can read more about our successful campaign to protect LWCF and its funding here.
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