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Historical Highlights: Legislation Passed
For 100 years, Audubon has set the standard for conservation, advocating tirelessly for public policy to protect birds, other wildlife, and their habitat. Here are some of the ways we have helped to make a difference. |
1901 Audubon Model Law: William Dutcher, chairman of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) Committee on Bird Protection, acts on behalf of the state Audubon Societies. He assists Florida Audubon in persuading the state legislature to pass the Audubon Model Law, outlawing plume hunting in the state.
1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act: President Wilson signs the historic law enforcing provisions of the treaty. It is the landmark law for protecting wild American birds.
1964 Wilderness Act: President Lyndon Johnson signs the Wilderness Act, designating 9 million acres of roadless area as protected wilderness. Audubon's lobbying efforts, led by Charles Callison, are key to this campaign.
1968 National Wild & Scenic Rivers, National Trails Acts: Congress establishes a National Wild and Scenic Rivers System for the protection of rivers with important scenic, recreational, fish and wildlife, and other values.
1966 National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act: The first “organic act” for the National Wildife Refuge System establishes a primary mission of the Refuge System and outlines a process for determining compatible uses of refuges.
1970 First Earth Day, Clean Air Act, National Environmental Policy Acts: The public's environmental consciousness is at an all-time high, and numerous groundbreaking environmental laws come out of the ferment.
1972 EPA bans DDT: The decades-long struggle over the persistent pesticide ends with a federal ban on most of its uses in the U.S.
1973 Endangered Species Act: Congress establishes safety net for birds and wildlife on the brink of extinction, such as the Bald Eagle.
Land and Water Management Act and Water Resources Act: The Legislature enacts these laws which become the basis for water management districts, and land use protection, including designation of the Florida Keys, Big Cypress and Green Swamp as Areas of Critical Concern.
1978 Manatee Protection Act: Audubon's campaign to protect the West Indian manatee succeeds.
1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act: Congress passes the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, creating the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, but leaves a 1.5-million-acre area of the coastal plain considered by many the "biological heart" of the refuge.
1981 Save Our Rivers and Save Our Coasts: Programs are approved by the Legislature.
1990 Preservation 2000: This model land acquisition program is approved by the Legislature with Audubon support.
1987 Surface Water Improvement and Management Act: [SWIM] is approved by the Legislature.
1996 Farm Bill: Congress approves the Farm Bill with $200 million for Everglades restoration: Vice President Al Gore announces the Clinton Administration's $1.2 billion Everglades Restoration Plan.
1997 National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act: Establishes for the first time a “wildlife first” mission for the National Wildlife Refuge System, directing America’s wildlife refuges to be managed in order to preserve their biological integrity while providing opportunities for public use such as birdwatching, hunting, and fishing.
"Save Our Everglades" amendments: Voters approve two of the three, calling for a "Polluter Must Pay" requirement concerning Everglades pollution.
2000 Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act: Congress approves this act which establishes a matching grants program to fund projects in the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean, helping to assist and perpetuate healthy populations of neotropical migratory birds.
2001 Roadless Rule: This ruling protects 58.5 million acres of wild national forests from most commercial logging and road-building. However, this rule is currently in jeopardy under the Bush Administration, putting these last wild forests at immediate risk.
2003 Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: (ANWR) protected from oil and gas drilling. Audubon grassroots activists help defeat a legislative attempt to open the coastal plains of ANWR to oil and and gas drilling and development. However, there is yet to be permanent protection. |
