Sportsmen Aim To Prevent Reckless Energy Development

NWF   |   July 23, 2008

Sportsmen for Responsible
Energy Development
has established energy development guidelines aimed to
provide guidance on how legislation should be crafted to strike a balance
between conservation and energy development in the West.

The Sportsmen coalition is comprised of more
than 150 hunting and fishing organizations and Sfred_recs
businesses. Conceived and written
by top scientists and policy experts, including former Forest Service Chief Mike
Dombeck and former Wyoming Game and Fish Director John Baughman, the coalition’s
recommendations (see the website for a PDF
version) are a much needed road map for Congress and land managers at a time
when vast tracks of western lands are being turned into industrial
zones.

“Sportsmen are rightly concerned about the
breakneck pace of oil and gas development in the west over the last decade,”
said Chris Wood, COO of Trout Unlimited. “Most sportsmen support the wise use of
energy resources from our public lands. But because that’s not happening today,
hunters and anglers from around the West are fighting to keep short term energy
development decisions from compromising the long-term health of the land and
waters we depend on.”

“People who hunt and fish on our western public
lands, and those who rely on sportsmen for their livelihoods, want our lands
managed for more than just oil and gas development,” said John Baughman, former
Wyoming Fish and Game Director.

“Hunting, fishing, and wildlife related recreation
contributes about $7.3 billion to state and local economies every year. Without
meaningful reform of the process being used to tap our energy resources, we will
lose more than just our wildlife but an entire way of life in the west. We need
to slow down and be sure we respond to our energy needs responsibly,” Baughman
said.

Published: July 23, 2008