Expanding Nature-Based Solutions
Table Of Content
Climate change-induced drought imperils our nation’s ecosystems and threatens to dramatically reduce drinking, industrial, and agricultural water supplies. The resulting impacts to water reliability disproportionately affect rural and tribal communities. In recent years, Republicans have worked to undermine our nation’s bedrock species protection laws, decrease funding for conservation initiatives and even permit drilling in precious places like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Democrats are working to strengthen laws like the ESA and MBTA, increase funding for conservation efforts, expand the National Wildlife Refuge System, and secure funding for the recovery of imperiled species[MB1] . Committee Democrats are working to protect and promote healthy river ecosystems that support western state economies.
House Passes Bipartisan Bills Supporting Outdoor Recreation, Conservation, Tribes and Territories
In this workshop, CNRA staff provided an overview of SB 27, walked through the Concept Discussion Draft, and facilitated discussion among workshop participants. The Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy will drive implementation of the Governor’s Executive Order and expanded climate action in this sector, which has been called for in California’s Climate Change Scoping Plan and California’s recently updated Climate Adaptation Strategy. Our California Natural Resources Agency and many of its departments have moved homes for the first time in six decades! We are excited to welcome you to our interactive and environmentally friendly new campus at the corner of 8th and P Streets. Freshman lawmaker Liz Ortega (D-San Leandro) will helm the labor and employment committee on the heels of a remarkable year for union-backed policy. “We have transitioned and we are about looking forward,” Ward said in an interview Tuesday, adding that Rivas told him he was chosen for the role because of his background working on housing and homelessness issues as a member of the San Diego City Council.
House Passes Bipartisan Bills Advancing Sportsmen's Access and Tribal Sovereignty - Hearing Committee Activity The House Committee on Natural Resources
House Passes Bipartisan Bills Advancing Sportsmen's Access and Tribal Sovereignty.
Posted: Tue, 12 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Homeless encampments are on the ballot in Arizona. Could California, other states follow?
The Committee's responsibilities include promoting environmental stewardship, sustainable resource management, and the preservation of natural and cultural heritage. By conducting oversight, writing legislation, and engaging in bipartisan collaboration, the House Committee on Natural Resources aims to ensure the responsible and equitable use of the United States' natural resources for the benefit of present and future generations. Settlements quantify and secure legal recognition of these rights, protecting the water supply for tribes and providing certainty to all water users in a basin. Indian water rights settlements help ensure water security for entire communities, a matter of paramount importance for regions combating severe drought exacerbated by climate change. To improve clean water access and address the federal government’s legal obligations, Congress has historically approved and funded Indian water rights settlements, which are negotiated legal agreements that secure tribal water rights and provide the water infrastructure needed to treat and deliver water.
Water, Wildlife and Fisheries
Not every recipient of a new leadership role supported Rivas, signaling that he and state lawmakers are willing to forgive and forget after this year’s political drama. The criminal referral to the Department of Justice outlines evidence of a likely criminal quid pro quo between Trump administration officials, including former U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, and Arizona real estate developer Mike Ingram. The Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee has jurisdiction over each agency and program overseen by the full Committee. The Subcommittees on Insular Affairs and Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans were merged into the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife. In the 112th Congress, the number was again increased to 5, adding the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs.
Biden Deals Devastating Blows to Alaskan Communities, Tribes and Energy Security
This work includes upholding the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and supporting other legislation and agency actions that protect and conserve our natural resources for future generations. Indian water rights settlements have been the preferred alternative to litigation for tribes, states, and the federal government, including every Republican and Democratic administration, for decades. Negotiated settlements relieve taxpayers from significant legal liability; support cooperative solutions that benefit all stakeholders; and prevent costly, protracted, and divisive water rights litigation across the western states. Settlements also help tribal communities move past the health and economic consequences caused by a lack of secure access to water.
Westerman Stands with Local Communities as Biden Bends to Radical Environmental Agenda
Despite this legal responsibility, many tribal water rights today still remain largely undeveloped and unprotected with 48 percent of homes in tribal communities lacking access to reliable water sources, clean drinking water, or basic sanitation. Additionally, Native American households are 19 times more likely than white households to lack complete running water and indoor plumbing. Subcommittee Democrats are actively working to protect at-risk wildlife species, habitats, and communities from the negative impacts of climate change.
Climate change is also warming the world’s oceans, which have already absorbed over 90% of the heat trapped by the greenhouse gases humans emit into the atmosphere. Warmer ocean temperatures cause sea level rise, increase the frequency and severity of storms, and harm marine ecosystems, threatening coastal communities across the U.S. and its territories. The Hearing Report presents findings and redacted documents from the Committee’s investigation into PR firms’ work on behalf of fossil fuel companies to mislead the public and block climate change policy proposals. A corresponding hearing featured a whistleblower that detailed her experience in dealing with a PR Firm hired to harass, intimidate, and prevent her from collecting ballot signatures.
Species around the world are threatened by human-related activities, from climate change and habitat destruction to wildlife trafficking. We are currently facing the 6th mass extinction in history, with species disappearing approximately 100 times faster than the normal rate. However, House Republicans have launched a coordinated attack to tip the scales of justice in favor of corporate interests that do not want to be held accountable for the environmental damage they cause.
House Natural Resources Subcommittee Field Hearing on Critical Minerals Access
Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego) also supported Rendon over Rivas and was named leader of the housing committee on Tuesday, now overseeing policy decisions on one of the state’s top issues. Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, a Democrat and longtime Rendon ally who is running for mayor of Sacramento, was named chair of the high-profile public safety committee as California grapples with its crime response and leads the nation on issues including gun regulation. Tensions over how to respond to fentanyl and child sex trafficking split Democrats at the Capitol earlier this year.
Resulting emergency funding for State wildlife agencies to perform surveillance was a good start. The permanent authorization of such funds, as recommended by scientists and national security experts, is the next step. Congressional oversight of federal agencies is an essential part of the legislative process. Since the late 1700s, congressional oversight and investigations have improved federal government accountability and have led to major policy improvements. The Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries is working hard to advance federal water policy that promotes future drought resiliency through forward-thinking, collaborative policy solutions.
Democratic Members will continue protecting marine ecosystems and increasing sustainability and transparency of our fisheries. Federal licenses for the construction and operation of nonfederal hydropower projects are typically issued for 50 years, meaning many dams across the country are currently operating on licenses granted prior to the passage of modern environmental laws. Dams undergoing the relicensing process are eligible for year-to-year license extensions, which allow aging dams to continue operating without the facility upgrades necessary to comply with current law. This issue will likely gain urgency in the years to come as nearly a fifth of all federal hydropower licenses are set to expire by December 2026. Committee Democrats are working to ensure robust environmental and tribal protections for existing and future hydropower projects.
Both Wicks and Gabriel hold power over the state’s purse strings in their new roles, and are allies of Rivas, helping him secure the speakership during chaotic jockeying in the Capitol. IUU fishing is estimated to account for 20% of fish catches globally, with an estimated annual economic loss of $26 to $50 billion. IUU fishing is a major driver in the decrease of global fish stocks, threatening marine ecosystems, and jeopardizing food security and the American economy.
Committee Democrats are fighting for reliable and sufficient funding to support existing and future congressionally approved tribal water settlements. Under Chair Grijalva’s leadership last Congress, Committee Democrats helped enact new tribal water settlements and deliver significant investments for tribal water projects, including $2.5 Billion for tribal water rights ssettlements in the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act. The U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources considers legislation and conducts congressional oversight on all issues within the Committee’s jurisdiction (see below).
From the rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona to the crown of the Statue of Liberty in New York, to the peaks of Mount Denali in Alaska, America’s public lands include some of the most iconic landscapes and treasured places in the world. Under the leadership of Ranking Member Raúl M. Grijalva, House Natural Resources Committee Democrats advance meaningful, justice-oriented solutions to fight climate change, pursue a healthier, more sustainable planet,and elevate the interests of Indigenous Peoples and residents of U.S. In early September 2022, CNRA held two public workshops to gather feedback on the development of the project registry. The building has much to offer and was designed to create connectivity with the community through usable open space at the pedestrian level, with public access to both retail and food services.
These coastal ecosystems absorb carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and safely store it at a rate of up to four times that of forests on land. They also reinforce coastlines, limiting the impacts of erosion, flooding and storms all while providing habitat for wildlife and fisheries. Other natural solutions include supporting living shorelines, a shoreline stabilization technique which provides wildlife habitat and natural resilience to communities threatened by rising sea levels, intensified storms, and coastal erosion. The federal government has a trust responsibility to protect tribes’ rights to access and use the water resources they are legally entitled to.
The ocean regulates global temperature, generates oxygen, provides essential food supplies and is the planet’s largest carbon sink. But climate change from the burning of fossil fuels poses significant risks to the health of our oceans. The Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee explored the potential for wildlife-borne diseases like Avian flu, COVID, Lyme Disease, and Ebola to cause outbreaks or even pandemics in people. The Committee hosted a hearing in 2019 on chronic wasting disease, a roundtable in 2020 on the impacts of wildlife-borne diseases on human health, and a hearing in 2022 on the importance of monitoring wildlife diseases and preventing public health crises.
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