Interior secretary to mark conservation fund’s anniversary in New Jersey

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell will travel to New Jersey next week to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a federal fund that pays for conservation efforts.

Joining Jewell at the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge will be Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe, New Jersey Reps. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R) and Leonard Lance (R), and conservation advocates.

{mosads}The Land and Water Conservation Fund was created on Sept. 3, 1964, when President Lyndon Johnson signed two laws to establish it.

It charges fees on offshore oil and gas leases and uses the money to pay to acquire parks, build park infrastructure and facilities, and for other conservation and recreation purposes.

Jewell, along with other federal officials and lawmakers, has used the summer to promote the conservation fund around the country.

The fund’s authorization will expire soon, and Obama administration officials are pushing to keep it alive.

Additionally, Jewell and others are pushing for more money for the fund. Since its inception, it has only been funded to its $900 million limit once.