FT. RILEY, KANSAS, November 8, 2006 – Department of
Agriculture Natural Resources and Environment Deputy Under Secretary
Merlyn Carlson and Department of Defense Environment,
Safety, and Occupational Health Assistant Deputy Under Secretary
Alex Beehler
signed an agreement today establishing a national partnership in conservation
efforts near military bases around the nation.
“This partnership announced today is good news for the environment,” Carlson
said. “Through cooperative conservation, USDA and DOD will enhance and improve
sensitive environmental lands adjacent to military bases across the country.”
In recent years the encroachment of urban development has become a serious
threat to military bases, their training facilities, and surrounding areas.
"DOD's new national partnership with USDA will greatly enhance the
sustainability of our military installations and the working landscapes
surrounding those installations. The agreement reflects the military's
increasing interest in working with other partners to promote better regional
conservation planning in areas across the country," said Beehler.
As part of DOD’s efforts to address urban encroachment concerns, DOD has created
the
Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI) and other programs
to work with partners to promote “compatible use buffers” and conservation
planning around military bases. Such buffers also provide wildlife habitat and
conserve the land.
In cases where priority conservation objectives can be met, USDA
Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) programs such as the Farm and
Ranch Lands Protection Program, the
Wetlands Reserve Program, and the
Grassland Reserve Program will
add to these efforts. This partnership enables NRCS and the Department of
Defense to gain greater efficiency by sharing technical information and services
necessary to continued conservation efforts.
For more information about NRCS conservation programs, contact your local USDA
Service Center or visit NRCS online at:
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/.
For more information about DOD’s REPI Conservation Buffer Program go online at:
https://www.denix.osd.mil/denix/Public/Library/Sustain/Ranges/REPI-FACT-SHEET.doc.
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