Press Releases

August 12, 2021 (Washington, D.C.) – Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), author of the bipartisan, bicameral Wildlife Corridors Conservation Act, today applauded the announcement by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland of new federal and state actions to promote wildlife corridors that will protect America’s biodiversity. Those actions, announced today by Secretary Haaland in Wyoming, include a partnership between the Department of the Interior (DOI) and the State of Wyoming to promote Wyoming’s Migration Corridor Conservation Strategy, and federal grants from DOI and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to states to protect habitats for big game species across the West.

“I am thrilled – but not surprised – to see Secretary Haaland taking strong action to protect America’s biodiversity and promote the creation of wildlife corridors,” said Rep. Beyer. “Secretary Haaland and the Department of the Interior staff have shown again that they are willing to listen and collaborate with red and blue states and policymakers from across the political spectrum to get things done and achieve results. In this case, those results are science-based protects that will help rebuild the populations of threatened species in ways that respect individual rights and benefit local economies, objectives we can all support. As the bipartisan backing for my bill, the Wildlife Conservation Corridors Act, has shown, conservation is a goal that can transcend political divisions if we listen to each other and work together, an approach we keep seeing from Secretary Haaland as she implements the America The Beautiful initiative.”

Beyer first introduced the Wildlife Corridors Conservation Act in 2016 following conversations with biologist E.O. Wilson, who coined the term “biodiversity,” and who continues to advocate for international efforts to protect threatened species. The Republican lead on the bill is Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL).