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Winter 2010 Edition
Published February 17, 2010
LWVAL Joins Protect Forever Wild Coalition - You Can, Too!
by Joyce Lanning, LWVAL Environmental Chair
At the board meeting on January 30, our state League voted to help renew the extremely successful Forever Wild funding at its current level by joining the Protect Forever Wild Coalition.
Though money is tight in financial hard times, any plans to divert these designated savings account earnings from public offshore oil and gas royalties for other projects is short-sighted. Forever Wild funding comes from 10% of the annual earnings of the Alabama Trust Fund, not to exceed $15 Million in any year. Funding is estimated at $8.5 Million in 2010.
Created in 1992 by a constitutional referendum that received 83 percent of the vote, Forever Wild is a program “dedicated to preserving Alabama's most beautiful and environmentally sensitive land, while expanding the recreational opportunities available to the public”. Over 200,000 acres in all parts of the state have been protected. This is approximately one-half of one percent of the land base in Alabama, the lowest percentage of public land ownership of any southeastern state.
Forever Wild merits and needs our support. Check out the Coalition website and see how you can sign up to stay informed and help renew funding for this valuable program.