Dear Senator/Representative,

On behalf of the undersigned organizations and the millions of Americans who hunt and fish, we strongly encourage you to cosponsor climate change legislation that includes dedicated funding for fish and wildlife conservation and restoration through a ‘cap and trade’ system and achieves a 2% per year reduction in pollution from carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

Hunters and anglers have been, and remain today, the backbone of North America’s monumental success in conservation and wildlife management in the last century. As hunters and anglers, we are concerned with climate change and its impacts on fish and wildlife. For example, trout populations are declining from increased water temperatures, wetlands critical to waterfowl populations are threatened due to increasing temperatures and sea level rise, and in some areas moose are disappearing due to hot summers.

As a result of the known and predicted impacts to fish and wildlife from climate change, we ask that you cosponsor climate change legislation including a ‘cap and trade’ system that will reduce carbon dioxide pollution by 2% annually, or 80% by 2050, and channel new revenue to natural resource agencies for fish and wildlife conservation activities.

Current federal efforts to conserve fish and wildlife are having dramatic results, but they fall far short of what is needed for helping wildlife survive climate change. A dedicated revenue stream will enable state fish and wildlife agencies and other key agencies to incorporate climate change science into their work and to conserve America’s long and cherished heritage of hunting, fishing and wildlife conservation.

We have used ‘cap and trade’ systems – and American ingenuity - successfully in the past to cut pollution. And, we can do it again to achieve an annual two percent reduction of greenhouse gases/carbon dioxide pollution through energy conservation, use of renewable and alternative energy and development of new technologies. It can also help bring new growth industries to our cities and rural communities, provide jobs and help bolster a stronger economy.

We who hunt and fish believe we have a moral responsibility to confront climate change in order to protect our outdoor heritage and our children’s future. Accordingly, we ask you to cosponsor legislation that reduces greenhouse gas pollution 2% annually through a cap and trade program and provides wildlife conservation funding to help wildlife survive climate change.

Sincerely,