November 12, 2024
After last Tuesday’s election, a change of U.S. leadership is underway that will influence environmental policy for years to come. Just as we have done with every administration, the Appalachian Mountain Club remains committed to protecting critical landscapes.
As a part of the AMC community, we urge you to get involved in advocating for people and the outdoors. 90,000 member voices are hard to ignore, even from the highest seats in government. The size and passion of our community can create the groundswell to catalyze change for critical landscapes.
The next six weeks, the end of the 118th Congress, are critical, with significant legislation and funding at stake. This “lame duck” period includes the last work session for current members of the House and Senate before new members take office in January.
Now is the moment to lace up our (hiking) boots and engage in meaningful action, together. Ready? Let’s get to work.
AMC trail crew working on Franconia Ridge Loop Restoration Project. Photo by Corey David Photography.
1. Tell Congress to pass the EXPLORE ACT before the end of the year
The EXPLORE Act will reduce barriers to the outdoors and create new outdoor recreation opportunities in the places that need them most.
Congress can make outdoor recreation more inclusive with the Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences (EXPLORE) Act, which is on a short list of bills primed for action by the end of the 118th Congress with strong bipartisan support.
The House and Senate have agreed on legislative text for the EXPLORE Act that includes several AMC priorities, including the Outdoors for All Act, which will reduce barriers for disadvantaged communities to access Land and Water Conservation Fund dollars for parks and outdoors access.
Other priorities in the outdoor recreation package include support for sustainable long-distance biking trails, improving the federal recreational permitting system, and protections for wilderness climbing. The EXPLORE Act will boost the recreation economy and make it easier for people with disabilities to get outside. Send a message to your Members of Congress sharing your support for the EXPLORE Act, and ask them to ensure that it is enacted before the end of the year.
2. Start with your state legislators to increase conservation funding
Speak up to protect the outdoor places you love, for climate and people.
Land conservation is one of the best tools for fighting climate change. AMC’s approach to protecting the places we love starts in our own backyards and favorite recreation spots, expands to encompass the regional landscapes and watersheds that nourish them, and scales up globally to consider the natural systems that underpin our way of life on Earth.
First, you can act on conservation funding initiatives in your state. Tell your state senator and representative that trail development and maintenance, parks and forest management, and land conservation are essential and require robust funding for projects and the state agencies dedicated to these activities.
Then scale up and ask your Members of Congress to support bold land and water protection goals to address our ongoing nature and biodiversity crisis. Add your voice in support of 30×30, the national and global movement to conserve 30 percent of the lands and waters of the United States by 2030. The 30×30 initiative would triple the conserved lands and waters nationwide, enhancing climate resilience, providing new and more equitable opportunities for outdoor recreation, protecting wildlife habitat, and more.
3. Get ready to speak up to pass the 2025 federal budget
Sign up for AMC’s Conservation Action Alerts and ensure funding to keep our land management and environmental agencies up and running.
The federal budget and appropriations process can be complicated, with dry talk of line items and impersonal-sounding numbers. What you understand if you love the outdoors and our public lands, however, is that behind those numbers are critical places and agency staff who help us build trails, keep us safe in the backcountry, manage our public forests and campsites, ensure clean air and water, and run the programs that advance AMC’s mission to foster the protection, enjoyment, and understanding of the outdoors.
Chronic underfunding of our land management agencies and conservation programs has left a backlog of land protection, maintenance, and basic operations needs. While recent victories have made strides in catching up, there is still a long way to go. Less visible parts of our outdoor experience–clean air and water–are ensured by environmental protection agencies and the science they rely on. Budget cuts loom on the horizon.
In the lame duck session of Congress, the 2025 federal budget will need to be passed before December 20, 2024. Sign up for our Conservation Action Network to receive updates and action opportunities.
Medawisla Lodge and Cabins, Maine Woods. Photo by Allagash Brewing Company.
4. Support state and regional conservation initiatives
Recent conservation wins reveal the power of community engagement.
Recent successes, such as the voter-approved $30 million investment in trails in Maine and the approval of the Rhode Island green bond which infuses $53 million in state clean energy and open space programs, showcase that states will continue to play a large role in conservation across our region.
Do you live in one of these states? Take action to support AMC initiatives close to home.
Maine: Maine voters just passed the Maine Trails Bond—a crucial measure to repair and enhance Maine’s trails! Here’s what we can do next: Provide allied support to ensure that the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the M’ikmaq, the Passamaquoddy, and the Penobscot enjoy the same rights and responsibilities as 570 other federally recognized tribes in the United States.
Massachusetts: Learn more about the the Mass. Forests as Carbon Solutions Initiative as a facet of the Clean Energy & Climate Plan implementation.
Connecticut: Advocate for passage of the Connecticut River Watershed Partnership Act (H.R. 5261/S. 2660).
New York, New Jersey, Delaware & Pennsylvania: Support passage of the NY-NJ Watershed Protection Act (H.R. 2982/S. 1355) and advocate for reauthorization and funding for the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program.
Suffern-Bear Mountain Trail, Harriman State Park, NY. Photo by Corey David Photography.