Below is an updated portion of a September/October 2021 Bugle magazine article titled “Equal Access to Injustice.”

Stolen Identities

What is particularly vexing, and especially perplexing for the general public, is the hijacking of the word conservation by environmental groups. The Center for Biological Diversity, for one, refers to itself as “a national, nonprofit conservation organization.” Others do the same, although hats off to the Sierra Club for identifying itself as what it really is – a “grassroots environmental organization.” Some media outlets further the confusion by referring to environmental groups as conservation groups.

Merriam-Webster defines conservation as “planned management of a natural resource to prevent exploitation, destruction or neglect.” Cited examples include water conservation and wildlife conservation. In other words, conservation is the hands-on stewardship of natural resources such as habitat enhancement and permanent protection of vital migration corridors and winter ranges.

Environmentalism, on the other hand, again according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is “a political and social movement focused on the preservation” of the natural environment. Preservation often refers to a hands-off approach or preventing any type of management activity.

There are swaths of designated wilderness and other backcountry areas that remain relatively untouched for very good reason. However, there are millions of acres of public forests that are overly dense with heavy fuel loads and downed deadfall due to decades of fire suppression. These overgrown forests throttle the growth of grasses and forbs vital for elk and big game and other wildlife, and are susceptible to disease, beetle kill and an elevated risk of catastrophic wildfire that can decimate an ecosystem.

What True Conservation Looks Like

The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s mission is to ensure the future of elk, other wildlife, their habitat and our hunting heritage. RMEF does so by working collaboratively with federal and state agencies as well as other partners to provide both funding and volunteer manpower to carry out prescribed burning, forest thinning, noxious weed treatments, repairing or constructing wildlife water developments, fertilizations, planting seedlings and other actions to maintain or improve habitat.

RMEF also provides grant funding for wildlife management, scientific research and predator management, and advocates for its mission. Additionally, RMEF seeks to protect and open public access to elk winter and summer range, migration corridors and calving grounds via land acquisitions, access agreements and easements, conservation easements, land donations and other means. RMEF also has a history of successfully reestablishing elk in historic ranges where habitat and cultural tolerance create a high potential for self-sustaining wild, free-ranging herds.

Just one small but impactful example of planned management or conservation: RMEF provided other funding for an ongoing series of projects to create and enhance forage openings and water sources for elk and other wildlife in Virginia’s Elk Restoration Zone. This important habitat enhancement work benefits Virginia’s growing elk herd, which was restored to its historic range by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) and RMEF in 2012. Because of projects designed to improve elk habitat like this one, DWR then introduced a special elk hunting license that led to Virginia’s first managed elk hunt in more than a century, one that generated vital funding to benefit elk herds and habitat for a rich variety of other wildlife.

Any objective look at the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s lifetime conservation accomplishments shows the immense impact the organization has had on elk, other wildlife and habitat. As of January 1, 2025, RMEF conserved or enhanced more than 7.6 million acres of wildlife habitat and protected 1.5 million acres of land. That amounts to more than 9.1 million acres of combined conservation work. On top of that, RMEF played a pivotal role in restoring wild, free-ranging elk to Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Ontario. and RMEF has invested millions of dollars to help fund wildlife research key to delivering the most effective management. All that adds up to a lot of work and a lot of conservation.

About Hunt 2 Conserve

Hunt 2 Conserve is a 501(c)4 nonprofit organization affiliated with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Its mission is to advance a legacy of hunting and conservation by educating, activating and developing stewards and defenders of these fundamentally American ideals. For more information, go to hunt2conserve.org.

(Photo credit: Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation)