No images? Click here New Sentinel Landscapes to Strengthen Military Readiness and Address Climate Change and Other Natural Resource ChallengesWASHINGTON, DC, Feb. 15, 2022 – The Sentinel Landscapes Partnership, comprised of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Interior (DOI) today announced three new areas designated as sentinel landscapes, where natural and working lands thrive alongside military installations and ranges. These landscapes play a key role in strengthening the nation’s military readiness while addressing natural resources concerns like climate change. The three new sentinel landscapes are the Camp Bullis Sentinel Landscape in Texas, Northwest Florida Sentinel Landscape and Southern Indiana Sentinel Landscape.
Read more about the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership's purposes in the 2022 Sentinel Landscapes Memorandum of Understanding. About the New Sentinel LandscapesCamp Bullis Sentinel LandscapeThe Camp Bullis Sentinel Landscape, based in the Texas Hill Country, encompasses ranch lands, spring-fed creeks, local and state parks and one of the fastest growing regions in the country. Joint Base San Antonio’s Camp Bullis provides training opportunities for 266 mission partners, supporting all DoD enlisted and officer medical training, military intelligence, special forces, pre-deployment, national and international training requirements. The landscape boundary contains the Edwards and Trinity Aquifers that Camp Bullis, San Antonio and the surrounding communities depend on for clean drinking water. Partners are focused on building community and installation resilience to drought, flood and wildfire; improving water quality and quantity; maintaining and improving agricultural productivity; increasing the viability of threatened, endangered and at-risk species; and expanding access to public recreation opportunities. Northwest Florida Sentinel LandscapeThe Northwest Florida Sentinel Landscape contains rural and agricultural lands, iconic longleaf pine forests, threatened and endangered species habitat and nine key DoD facilities, which are integral to U.S. Air Force training, weapons testing and special operations and also provide initial training to all Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard aviators. Partners will focus on addressing resilience and sustainability challenges; retain working agriculture and forest lands as compatible, resilient and sustainable land uses; increase the resilience and sustainability of natural systems by conserving and restoring habitat and water resources; and identify, implement and accelerate projects that mitigate coastal risks and increase the climate resilience of military installations and the landscapes that overlap mission footprints. Southern Indiana Sentinel LandscapeThe Southern Indiana Sentinel Landscape is anchored by four critical DoD installations and ranges that provide a variety of testing and training opportunities for the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, National Guard, as well as federal and state partners. This vast landscape also contains six state parks, seven state forests, nine state fish and wildlife areas, 39 state-dedicated nature preserves, one National Forest and three National Wildlife Refuges. With the primary objective of preserving and protecting military mission readiness, operations, testing and training capabilities, the Southern Indiana Sentinel Landscape partners will also promote and support agricultural and working lands; provide for watershed and riparian corridor protections by promoting landscape resiliency; sustain and restore forest lands through sustainable land management and protections; and ensure endangered, threatened and at-risk species protection through habitat preservation and restoration. How to join the webinar:During this webinar, participants will learn more about the newly designated sentinel landscapes, what makes them different, their history, their priorities, and how they embody the mission of the Sentinel Landscapes Partnership. Please join us for this webinar at 1:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 2, 2022.
More About Sentinel Landscapes Through fiscal year 2020, projects across sentinel landscapes have attracted roughly $178 million in DoD funds, $250 million in USDA funds, $57 million in DOI funds, $230 million in state funds, $16 million in local funds, and $104 million in private funds. These contributions have permanently protected over 515,000 acres of land and enrolled 2.7 million acres of land in technical assistance programs. |