The Migratory Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements Act is Launched within the Home

WASHINGTON (October 5, 2022) — This week, Congressman Ron Sort and Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar launched H.R. 9135, the Migratory Birds of the Americas Conservation Enhancements Act, within the Home of Representatives. This bipartisan invoice will improve the Neotropical Migratory Fowl Conservation Act (NMBCA), an progressive and cost-effective strategy to the conservation of the greater than 350 neotropical chicken species within the U.S. that journey to Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Canada yearly, such because the Scarlet Tanager, Purple Martin, and Blackburnian Warbler.

A companion invoice was launched by Senators Ben Cardin and Rob Portman earlier this yr. 

“Migratory birds transcend nationwide borders, which is why we’d like a hemispheric strategy to conservation,” mentioned Marshall Johnson, chief conservation officer on the Nationwide Audubon Society. “Three billion birds have been misplaced since 1970, and the identical elements that threaten them additionally threaten our personal communities. This invoice will assist present the investments we have to defend the locations that each birds and folks have to survive.” 

NMBCA helps the conservation of chicken habitat in addition to analysis, monitoring, outreach, and schooling.  As an identical grant program, it catalyzes funding from a spread of sources past the U.S. authorities. Since 2000, the U.S. has invested $80 million which has sparked a further $310 million in matching funds from public-private partnerships. These funds have supported 658 initiatives in 36 Latin American and Caribbean international locations, 40 U.S. states and territories, and provinces and territories throughout Canada. 

Each spring, hundreds of thousands of birds journey 1000’s of miles from Latin America and the Caribbean to their breeding grounds within the U.S. and Canada, as far north because the Arctic. As winter approaches, these migratory birds make the lengthy journey again south. Other than being among the many most beautiful and awe-inspiring species loved by birdwatchers, these greater than 300 species of birds are additionally economically essential for his or her position in pest management, seed dispersal, pollination for agriculture, and ecotourism. Within the U.S., the Fish and Wildlife Service estimates there are 45 million birdwatchers, producing an financial output of $96 billion.   

About Audubon 
The Nationwide Audubon Society protects birds and the locations they want, right this moment and tomorrow. Audubon works all through the Americas utilizing science, advocacy, schooling, and on-the-ground conservation. State packages, nature facilities, chapters, and companions give Audubon an unparalleled wingspan that reaches hundreds of thousands of individuals annually to tell, encourage, and unite numerous communities in conservation motion. A nonprofit conservation group since 1905, Audubon believes in a world wherein folks and wildlife thrive. Study extra at www.audubon.org and on Fb, Twitter and Instagram @audubonsociety.  

Media Contacts: 
Megan Moriarty, megan.moriarty@audubon.org