Conservation Alliance Grantee Protects 7 Million Acres
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society Wins Campaign to Expand Nahanni National Park
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Bend, Ore., – The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) has succeeded in its effort to expand the boundaries of Nahanni National Park Reserve by a staggering seven million acres. The Conservation Alliance supported this effort with two grants totaling $50,000 in 2006 and 2008.
The park is now nearly seven times the size of the original one established in 1972. The expansion, announced on June 9 by Canadian Environment Minister Jim Prentice, will permanently protect an expanse of Boreal wilderness the size of Vancouver Island.
“The Nahanni is the jewel of Canada’s Boreal forest, and one of the world’s greatest wilderness treasures. Canada has shown true global leadership by protecting it,” says CPAWS National Executive Director Eric Hébert-Daly.
This conservation victory adds to the string of successes The Conservation Alliance is celebrating with its grantees in 2009. In March, President Obama signed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act, which pushed 14 Alliance-funded projects across the finish line. In total, Alliance funding has helped protect 10 million acres and 1000 miles of rivers, acquire one climbing area, and remove one dam, all in 2009.
“We’re in the middle of the most exciting year of our 20-year history. The Nahanni victory marks a huge accomplishment for our Canadian colleagues,” said John Sterling, Conservation Alliance Executive Director. “We think our members will be proud of our ability to invest their dollars in campaigns that can succeed given adequate funding.”
About the Conservation Alliance:
The Conservation Alliance is an organization of outdoor businesses whose collective contributions support grassroots environmental organizations and their efforts to protect wild places where outdoor enthusiasts recreate. Alliance funds have played a key role in protecting rivers, trails, wildlands and climbing areas.
Membership in the Alliance is open to companies representing all aspects of the outdoor industry, including manufacturers, retailers, publishers, mills and sales representatives. The result is a diverse group of businesses whose livelihood depends on protecting our natural environment.
Since its inception in 1989, the Alliance has contributed more than $7.4 million to grassroots environmental groups. Alliance funding has helped save over 49 million acres of wildlands; 27 dams have either been stopped or removed; and the group helped preserve access to more than 17,000 miles of waterways and several climbing areas.
For complete information on the Conservation Alliance, see www.conservationalliance.com.
