For nearly three years, Mark Warner has fought to get some relief to national parks in the Commonwealth and across the country. Our parks have fallen into disrepair — many haven’t gotten the money they need to be maintained for years.
That translates into more than $12 billion dollars in maintenance that needs to be done— with $1.1 billion of that in Virginia alone.
Shenandoah National Park, one of the Commonwealth’s natural treasures, has a backlog of over $88 million in deferred maintenance. And we’re not just talking about trails and bridges — folks in the Washington, D.C. area who commute on the G.W. Parkway know how deteriorated that road is.
The Great American Outdoors Act would help reduce that backlog and get folks back in our parks and provide 100,000 jobs across the country — including 10,000 jobs in Virginia alone.
This bill also includes full, permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). This fund was established in 1964 to protect our country’s natural beauty and water resources, and preserve our cultural heritage sites.