Meridian Star

Opinion: Great American Outdoors Act brings jobs to Mississippi

By Justin Brooks, The Nature Conservancy in Mississippi 

Mississippi has been blessed with beautiful public lands for those of us who enjoy escaping reality to spend the morning hunting with an old friend, a weekend getaway camping with the kids under the stars or playing sports down at the local ball field. Many of these activities are made possible through federal funding from The Land & Water Conservation Fund or LWCF.

Through a strong bipartisan effort, Congress passed the Great American Outdoors Act to fully fund LWCF in perpetuity.

And recently, President Trump hosted several members of Congress and other supporters of the legislation as he signed the Great American Outdoors Act into law. Senator Roger Wicker said, “The Great American Outdoors Act is the most significant land conservation legislation passed in nearly 50 years. This new law will support Mississippi’s national parks, outdoor recreation, and natural treasures.”

Passed in 1964, LWCF is funded through royalties and fees collected from offshore drilling explorations. These funds are then spent on creating and improving outdoor recreational opportunities across the nation. The program allows for a maximum annual allocation of $900 million from Congress but has remained underfunded for decades. However, that has all changed with the passage of this legislation.

This legislation also incorporated important funding to repair the enormous maintenance backlog on national parks, national forests and wildlife refuges. All of Mississippi’s 13 national wildlife refuges, 7 national forests, the entire Natchez Trace Parkway and other lands will now have more flexibility and opportunities to address their critical infrastructure needs that make these areas operational and accessible.

There is a major economic factor associated with addressing the infrastructure work needed on these public lands. Vice President Pence mentioned earlier this week, “this will … create more than 110,000 infrastructure jobs. As we improve our national parks, we’re putting Americans back to work.”.

This couldn’t have come at a better time, as Americans are visiting these areas in record numbers in order to step away from the constant day-to-day complications of trying to balance the new working from home, full-time parent, part-time teacher scenario that has resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This bill will provide endless opportunities for cities to build parks, ball fields, and other places to enjoy outdoor recreation. Being able to offer quality public lands for all to enjoy, further benefits Mississippi’s $2.1 billion outdoor recreation economy.

One of the more remarkable features of this program is the mere fact almost all 82 counties in Mississippi and nearly every county throughout America has benefited directly from local recreational projects funded through LWCF.

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith has pledged her commitment to make sure Mississippi has a seat at the table for funding opportunities, “Now that this legislation will become law, I will do everything I can to see that Mississippi’s national park sites and conservation priorities are properly recognized and treated fairly.”

Hunters, anglers, hikers, and all those in-between who cherish the outdoors will remember 2020 as one of the most challenging times in American history. But our children and grandchildren can look back and remember 2020 as the year historic legislation secured their public lands and their opportunities to enjoy the great outdoors.