Governor Touts Conservancy Plans, Links to Tourism and Jobs

By Matt Poms Thursday, May 13, 2010

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell hailed state land conservation efforts, while linking them to tourism and job creation at a speech to the Williamsburg Land Conservancy Convention Tuesday. McDonnell also highlighted an initiative to preserve 400,000 acres of open space in the next four years, continuing a similar project begun by former Governor Tim Kaine.

“We really have it all. We have mountains, ocean, beautiful rivers, just incredible god-given natural resources, and we do have a duty to protect it for future generations,” McDonnell told the audience of around 150 at the Hospitality House. “The success that we have in bringing companies to Virginia is not just in our great taxes and regulations, but also our natural beauty and open spaces and recreational opportunities.”

McDonnell praised the efforts of groups such as the Virginia Land Trust Organization in aiding Kaine’s pledge, which was completed in January. In total, 424,103 acres were preserved during the Kaine administration, and McDonnell vowed to achieve a similar number.

“Land trusts, public sector, state agencies, local governments, everyone has been working together to make this happen,” McDonnell said. “I think the second 400,000 acres will be a little harder than the first one, for a lot of reasons. But I was talking to some people earlier today about reaching for new ideas, thinking a little bit outside of the box to make some incentives.”

The governor cited tax credits and a drive to promote gifts to land conservancies in wills as several encouragements.

“We’ve got a start; we’ve preserved about 18,704 acres so far in the first 115 days or so,” McDonnell said. “We’ve got a long way to go, but I’m confident that we can work together to reach that goal.”

Playing on campaign promises of his role as a jobs governor, McDonnell addressed the impact that land conservation has on the state’s economy. He highlighted the roles of agriculture and forestry as the state’s leading industries — to the tune of $79 billion a year — and reinforced his commitment to expanding tourism.

“It’s a huge goal of mine and the General Assembly’s that we have dramatically increased the resources for tourism, with about $7 to $8 million to create new tourism grants,” McDonnell said. “I know I’m getting tired of seeing those [visit] Michigan commercials in Virginia; we’re going to make [visit] Virginia commercials in Ann Arbor and Detroit. Tell them to come spend some money at Busch Gardens and historic Colonial Williamsburg.”

The governor then lauded Chesapeake Bay conservation efforts, while praising the role of the Virginia Scenic Rivers Program in aiding water quality.

“Just last week we celebrated the 40th anniversary of the scenic river program,” he said. “We now have over 630 miles of water in that program … And all of that is helping our efforts to reduce environmental contamination.”

McDonnell cited the recent news that Chesapeake Bay blue crab populations had increased by 60 percent in the past year as evidence of the success of those efforts.

Finally, the governor stressed the relationship between job creation and the vitality of the state’s natural resources.

“We know that the better job we do of providing protection for our marvelous open spaces, then the better job that I can do to sell the beauty and assets of Virginia to prospective employers,” McDonnell said. “I’m going to be going over the next five months to England, China, and India. We’ve got money in the budget to open up trade offices to tell the story of Virginia. We’ve got so much that we produce here that could be exported around the world and lead to new jobs and new opportunities.”