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When
the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund was created in 1976, it
was a great day for land conservation and recreation in Michigan.
The Fund was known then as the Kammer Land Trust Fund in recognition
of then-state senator Kerry Kammer who introduced the legislation
creating it as the Great Compromise in a dispute over oil and gas
drilling in the Pigeon River Country State Forest. It was a historic
agreement through which environmentalists agreed to limited drilling
in exchange for having the revenues placed in a special fund for the
acquisition of environmentally sensitive and recreational land for
conservation and public use. It was the first program of its kind
in the nation. In the quarter century since the enactment of that historic program, over $461 million has been invested in conservation and recreation projects by the fund–approximately $384 million in land acquisition and $77 million in recreational development projects, a category that was added to the Trust Fund program in 1987. The Little Traverse Conservancy has worked in partnership with the state and local government partners to assist with projects supported by the Trust Fund. Though the Conservancy may not itself own land purchased with Trust Fund monies, we have helped to acquire land valued at over $20.8 million. Included in this total are such beautiful natural areas as the Colonial Point Forest near Burt Lake with its ancient oak trees; the Headlands of Mackinaw City with 600 acres of forest and 2.5 miles of Great Lakes shoreline; and North Point near Charlevoix with its spectacular sand dunes. We have helped the state acquire the fragile and beautiful Sturgeon Bay Dunes in Emmet County’s Bliss Township with over ¾ mile of Lake Michigan beach; an important public access on the Maple River; a quarter mile of sandy beach on Beaver Island’s Little Sand Bay; and a lesser known but environmentally sensitive 144-acre tract near the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory in the Upper Peninsula. Popular local parks have also been acquired through partnerships involving the Trust Fund, local government and the Conservancy. Examples include Spring Lake Park between Petoskey and Harbor Springs; Readmond-Friendship park (known as the Church Beach) near Good Hart; Resort Township’s East and West Parks, adjoining Bay Harbor; Ashmun Bay with its natural marsh and boat launch in Sault Ste. Marie; and the Clark Township Beach which provides public swimming access in Hessel. There are other projects as well. It is important to note that Conservancy fund raising and negotiated donations have accounted for over $9.4 million of the cost of these projects, or 45% of the total. Since the Trust Fund requires only a 25% match in local projects and no match at all in state acquisitions, it is obvious that the partnership between the Conservancy and the Trust Fund has helped to stretch Trust Fund dollars, protect more natural land and create more parks than would have been possible otherwise. As the Trust Fund celebrates its 25th anniversary and the Conservancy passes its 29th, it is fitting that we recognize the importance of working together for land conservation. Just as we work to protect natural land through the Trust Fund program, we must work from time to time to protect the Trust Fund itself, and the principal of directing money from non-renewable mineral resources into land acquisition. Most people in Michigan felt that an important trust had been betrayed when Trust Fund monies were diverted to other uses. Such things as a buyout for operators of double-bottomed tankers and deposits into a state "Rainy Day Fund" had not been in the picture when the Trust Fund was enacted. Fortunately, despite the damage that these and other raids had done, the Trust Fund was given the protection it deserved by a vote of the people in a statewide referendum led by the Michigan United Conservation Clubs. Many of us were suspicious but ultimately gave our support to a more recent change to the Trust Fund that diverted money to state park funding, beyond the original vision of the Trust Fund. More proposals to change the Trust Fund have surfaced. The idea of allowing the Fund’s principal to be managed to earn a better return, mentioned in Governor Engler’s State of the State Address, makes sense. So do proposals to raise the cap on the principal sum in the fund and to revise the so-called "trigger" provision which forces the fund to operate on interest earnings only instead of using part of the income stream from oil and gas wells. But a fourth proposal, to allow up to half of the Trust Fund’s expenditures in any given year to be used for development instead of land acquisition, goes against the core of what the Fund is about and should be scrapped. It has been argued that because demand is high for development projects, the Trust Fund’s mandate should be modified in order to meet this demand. While I agree that development funding is needed for parks and other outdoor recreation facilities, the Trust Fund should not be the source of such monies. That would be a violation of the spirit and the intent of the Great Compromise, and it would be unnecessary: the recent success of the Clean Michigan Initiative demonstrates that the people of Michigan can and will support sensible proposals to fund important recreation projects without raiding the Trust Fund or its revenue stream. While some argue that there is "enough" or "too much" public land in Michigan already, overwhelming support for land acquisition projects by state and local units demonstrates that this is the view of a small minority. Many of us wholeheartedly support an overall review of state land holdings and a consolidation or shift of state forest boundaries in order to best protect important habitats and resources while affording recreational opportunities to the public. But until that happens, we must remember that most of Michigan’s public land came into state ownership because no one wanted it and it was allowed to revert for non-payment of taxes. The existence of this public land in no way reduces the importance of land acquisition for communities interested in reclaiming their waterfronts, for establishing parks for growing populations, or for rounding out our network of state forests, parks, public access sites and game areas. As we wish the Trust Fund a happy 25th birthday, conservation and recreation enthusiasts should be proud of what has been accomplished by this visionary program. But while celebrating, we need to bear in mind that special interests will always have their eyes on the large sums of money that the Natural Resources Trust Fund commands. In order to protect the integrity of the Trust Fund and the spirit of the Great Compromise that ended the Pigeon River oil drilling controversy, we need to remain on guard against threats to Michigan’s—and the nation’s—most innovative, visionary land conservation program. |
