Most important conservation law in half
a century is now law
After the president signed the
legislation, to thank him, I presented him with a “mountain man”
walking stick that a Smoky Mountain craftsman gave me during my walk
across the state when I campaigned for governor in 1978. I reminded
him that Teddy Roosevelt, the great conservation President, used to say,
“Speak softly and carry a big
stick.”
It is no exaggeration to say that something
remarkable and historic happened this week. President Trump signed into law
the most important conservation legislation in a half century, the Great American Outdoors Act.
From the National Mall to the Great Smokies to the Grand
Canyon to Pearl Harbor, too many of the 419 national park properties
are in bad shape, and visitors often are shocked to find so many roads,
picnic areas, trails, campgrounds and visitor centers in bad condition
or even closed. The reason for the all the excitement is that the new
“Great American Outdoors Act” over the next five years
will provide $9.5 billion to cut in half the deferred maintenance
backlog in our national parks and forests and other public lands so
Americans can enjoy them.
The law also
permanently provides $900 million each year for the Land and Water
conservation Fund (LWCF). Since the 1960’s, the LWCF has provided
$221 million for Tennessee, which included the purchase of the 10,000
acre Rocky Fork property in Upper-East Tennessee and the purchase of
over 2,000 acres to create the John Tully State Forest in West
Tennessee.
There were many
marchers in this parade – Democrats, Republicans, hundreds of
conservation groups – but this would not have happened without
President Trump’s support. He is the first President to allow funds from
energy exploration on federal property to be used to reduce the
maintenance backlog in national parks. And when he visited Tennessee in
March I asked him and he agreed to expand to include other public lands
in the legislation that I had introduced three years ago covering only
national park properties.
Here is what this new law means for Tennessee –
places like Look Rock Campground in the Smokies, which has been
closed for several years because the sewage system doesn’t work,
will have the resources to reopen so 5,000 families who once camped
there each year can enjoy it. The Cherokee National Forest in East
Tennessee, which has a $27 million deferred maintenance backlog and welcomes
three million visitors each year – more than most national
parks – will have its roads and trails restored. The Chickamauga and
Chattanooga National Military Park has a $30 million maintenance
backlog. And the Tennessee National Wildlife Refuge in West Tennessee has
a $8 million of maintenance work that needs to be done on boat ramps
and boat docks.
Italy has its art,
England has its history, Egypt has its pyramids, but the United States
has The Great American Outdoors. That is what we celebrated this week
at the White House, and I was proud to be one marcher in the
parade.
Click here to
watch President Trump sign into law this historic
legislation.
Important news from this
week:
Reuters: Republican senator gives Trump 'big stick' to carry
as election nears
The Greenville Sun: Column by Lamar
Alexander: Hermitage Hotel Important Site in Suffrage
Movement
If you lose, don’t be afraid to try again. From a lot of
at-bats eventually come some hits. – Tom Peters
#114 in Lamar Alexander’s
Little Plaid Book
