WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, announced last week that the United States National Park Service’s Land and Water Conservation Fund has awarded 18 grants, totaling $10,266,619, to Ohio organizations for outdoor recreation and conservation projects across the state.

“Ohioans depend on access to parks and public lands for outdoor recreation, community events and local jobs,” Brown said. “These Land and Water Conservation Fund grants will support Ohio economies and protect our natural resources for future generations.”

In June 2020, Brown supported the Senate passage of the Great American Outdoors Act, bipartisan legislation to improve access to public lands and preserve them for future generations. The Great American Outdoors Act invests in the repair of national park and public lands infrastructure and in protecting and providing recreational access through the Land and Water Conservation Fund to national, state and local parks, forests, wildlife areas and other public lands.

The LWCF was established in 1964 as a congressional investment in outdoor recreation resources, providing accessibility and funding to public lands that benefit American citizens. The program uses no taxpayer dollars, instead funding state-identified conservation and recreation projects through earnings from offshore oil and gas leasing. Brown is a cosponsor of the Land and Water Conservation Funding Act in July of 2019 to continue support for the LWCF.