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IT'S GOING TO TAKE MORE THAN A PENNY!
Commentary by Johnny Finch |
Given today's economy, what can you buy for less
than a penny? Not much, right? Would you believe
that Virginia has limited its funding for the
Commonwealth's natural resources to less than a
penny of each tax dollar that you pay the state?
People and mechanisms are in place to protect
the Commonwealth's air and water quality,
enforce waste management policies, staff and
maintain the state parks and natural areas, etc.
In fact, eight agencies comprise the Secretary
of Natural Resources' workforce.
Get the picture? Shades of "Mission Impossible"!
Take less than a penny and split it among eight
agencies. Talk about Solomon's choice. Surely
Virginia's environment is worth more than one
cent of each tax dollar.
The voters say so at every opportunity. For
example, in 1992 and again in 2002, the voters
overwhelmingly approved the use of General
Obligation Bonds to fund State Park System
capital construction and land acquisition
projects. The bonds were not to be used for
operation and maintenance; this need was to be
met from general fund appropriations.
But the Administration and the General Assembly
have not carried through on their respective
roles. Adequate funding to operate and maintain
the parks has not been forthcoming. For example,
the Commission on the Future of Virginia's
Environment in its 2002 report to the Governor
and the General Assembly (Senate Document No. 4)
noted that funding levels for state parks had
not been adjusted to reflect the increasing
costs for operating and maintaining the parks
due to inflation and the expansion of facilities
and services.
The Commission made two related recommendations.
The first was that budget amendments be prepared
to provide appropriations to address the $20.8
million shortfalls in operational ($12 million)
and maintenance reserve ($8 million) costs for
the state park system. The second recommendation
was that, during the next biennial budget,
funding levels for the State Park System be
reassessed and rebenchmarked to provide funding
sufficient to cover the future financial needs
of Virginia's state parks. The report shows that
part of the underpinning for the second
recommendation was the Commission's recognition
that the unfunded maintenance backlog alone
already amounted to hundreds of millions of
dollars.
The Administration and the General Assembly
responded to the Commission's recommendations
with even deeper budget cuts for the park
system, thereby more firmly cementing Virginia's
50th place standing-dead last -- among all
states in terms of per capita spending on state
parks. The funding shortfall is simply
staggering and continues to grow.
When it comes to water pollution, Virginia is
able to monitor only about 20 percent of our
river, stream, lake, and estuary miles. Do we
need to monitor more miles? Well, considering
the fact that we know that 44 percent of the 20
percent that is being monitored do not meet
minimum water quality standards, the answer
would seem to be a resounding "yes".
Even more depressing is the point that while the
number of environmental programs suffering from
inadequate funding is so substantial, the list
of environmental needs not being addressed at
all is even longer.
For example, the Commonwealth is losing open
space, historic sites, forests, and farms at an
alarming rate. Nearly a half-million acres of
prime farmland vanished over the ten-year period
from 1987 to 1997. Add to this the fact that
54,000 acres of forestland were lost each year
between 1992 and 2000.
A recent study by the Chesapeake Bay Commission
and the Trust for Public Land reveals the true
urgency of Virginia's conservation crisis. This
study states that over the next 25 years,
development will engulf an area of land equal to
all of the open space that has been developed in
Virginia since Colonial times.
Some solution mechanisms are in place. Among
these are the Virginia Land Conservation
Foundation (VLCF) and the Water Quality
Improvement Fund (WQIF). But these and other
mechanisms can't solve the problem without
adequate funding.
The VLCF is designed to help state agencies,
local governments, and nonprofit groups protect
open space, natural areas, and wildlife habitat.
The VLCF can leverage federal, state, local, and
private funds by providing matching grants to
localities and nonprofit groups. This way, every
dollar the state allocates to land conservation
can be increased to three or four.
Unfortunately, even though Virginia's land
conservation needs continue to mount, VLCF has
not been funded in recent years.
Similar to VLCF, the WQIF was established by the
General Assembly to provide matching grants to
localities, soil and water conservation
districts, and others. Through the WQIF, the
Commonwealth could address critical water
pollution issues such as nitrogen runoff, the
most serious problem affecting the health of the
Chesapeake Bay. Last year however, the WQIF
received no funding.
From the Eastern Shore to the Cumberland
Plateau, and from the Blue Ridge to the Bay,
Virginia is truly a study in natural beauty and
variety. Some among this variety are so rare
that they are found nowhere else. Yet nearly
half of all Virginia sites that support rare
species and natural communities remain
unprotected. These precious resources may soon
be lost to us forever unless Virginia provides
funding adequate for their protection.
Can it be done for less than a penny? I don't
think so! What do you think???
Johnny Finch, President
Virginia Association For Parks
"Supporting the Commonwealth's parks, natural
resources, and historic sites"
3601 Burton Road,
Bumpass, VA 23024
Phone: (540) 895-5061;
Fax: (540) 895-0025
www.virginiaparks.org
Email:
johnny_finch@yahoo.com
Johnny Finch, President * Nancy Fitzgerald,
Co-Chair (State Parks)
Wendy Oliver, Co-Chair (National Parks) * John
Taminger, Vice-Chair (State Parks) * Lynn
Davis, Vice-Chair (National Parks) * Jo Finch,
Secretary * Ann Lipp, Treasurer
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If you feel
as we do, we invite you to join in our
efforts |
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