Hardy Garden Club

                Conservation Committee

            GCA Current Position Papers

 

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Agriculture, Seed Diversity, and Food Security:  The GCA encourages agricultural policies that support the conservation of healthy soil on farms, the protection of seed diversity and a strong, well-funded conservation title in the Farm Bill.

 

Clean Air:

The GCA supports the Clean Air Act and urges a reduction 

in greenhouse gases through an integrated strategy of 

regulated emission caps, improved energy efficiency, and 

greater use of clean energy sources.

 

Climate Change: With an emphasis on encouraging action to preserve biodiversity, the GCA is committed to educating members and communities about the causes of climate change and constructive responses. The GCA supports policies and regulations, as well as individual initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Land Conservation: Recognizing the ever-increasing pressure for multiple uses of federal lands, the GCA supports strengthening public policy to make conservation the priority in the management of our National Parks, wildlife refuges, forests and public lands, including tribal lands. This includes continued full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the use of the federal portion of that fund to purchase and restore public lands.

 

 Native Plants:  Viewing the Endangered Species Act as one of America’s landmark pieces of conservation legislation, the GCA supports measures to protect the nation’s rare, threatened, and endangered plants and their habitat and the wildlife they support.  The GCA supports workable science-based recovery programs for all species.

 

Oceans: The GCA recognizes that oceans are the largest ecosystem, covering nearly three-quarters of Earth.  The GCA supports policies and legislation to protect our nation's coastal areas and oceans from all types of pollution and environmental degradation.

 

Transportation & Infrastructure: The GCA favors legislation that encourages biodiversity in roadside plantings, fosters the creation and maintenance of scenic byways, emphasizes protection of the natural landscape, addresses the hazards of electronic billboards, and underscores the importance of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process. The GCA recognizes the need to transition to a dependable grid based on clean and renewable energy resources. 

 

Waste Management: The GCA recognizes that effective waste management is vital to our health and well-being and encourages reducing, reusing, recycling and composting.  Further, the GCA support federal, state and local legislation and policy that supports responsible waste management.

 

Water: The GCA supports policies to protect the 

quality and quantity of our nation’s water resources. This 

includes preserving ecosystems and reducing water

pollution through a vital and broad-based Clean Water Act as well as protecting coastal waters and oceans through national initiatives.