Environmental Defense Praises Senate Action on Historic Conservation Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Sharyn Stein, 202-572-3396 sstein@environmentaldefense.org

Sean Crowley, 202-572-3331 scrowley@environmentaldefense.org

Washington, D.C. – September 21, 2007 – The following is a statement by Michael Bean, Wildlife Program Chairman for Environmental Defense, on Senate Finance Committee passage of the Habitat and Land Conservation Act:

“This is a vital bill for America’s conservation efforts because most of the rare species in America live on privately-owned land. It will give us unprecedented tools to help preserve our natural resources by providing tax incentives to make it financially possible for private citizens who want to be good stewards to help conserve the rare plants and animals that live on their land.

We applaud the Senate Finance Committee for approving the bill and especially Senators Max Baucus (D-MT), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) for their leadership on this issue. It’s not often you see any major piece of legislation with this much broad-based support. It has bipartisan backing in Congress and support from groups across the political spectrum — from the Farm Bureau to major environmental organizations, including Environmental Defense. Hopefully, that will mean the measure will continue its quick and smooth journey to passage by the entire Senate, and then the House of Representatives.”