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Local leaders back Mammoth Cave boundary additions to protect caves and bat habitat
Summary
Edmonson County Judge Executive Ron Lindsay urged the subcommittee to support HR3286, which would authorize the National Park Service to acquire about 551 acres owned by The Nature Conservancy for Mammoth Cave National Park to protect cave systems and endangered bat habitat; Lindsay said the purchase price is just under $1 million and funds would come from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and NPS allocations.
A county official and conservation partners urged the House subcommittee to advance HR3286, a bill that would add roughly 551 acres to Mammoth Cave National Park by authorizing acquisition of land now owned by The Nature Conservancy.
Ronald Scott Lindseay, Judge Executive of Edmonson County, told members the property contains cave passages important to endangered bat species and other ecological and cultural resources. "No organization is better equipped to protect these natural and cultural resources than the National Park Service and the experts at Mammoth Cave," Lindseay said, and he described the transfer as a way to preserve habitat and strengthen tourism-driven local economies.
Lindseay said the land is already under conservation ownership, so the transfer would not reduce the county’s tax base; he said the asking price is just under $1 million and that acquisition funding would come from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and National Park Service allocations. He also said the bill would authorize inclusion of features such as Coach Cave and James Cave into park holdings and emphasized local support from mayors and county officials.
Members asked whether the Nature Conservancy might gift the land; Lindseay said his knowledge was limited to the bill text and that proceeds would be returned to an imperiled-bat conservation fund if a sale occurs. The subcommittee recorded supportive local testimony but did not vote at the hearing; members may submit follow-ups in writing.
If advanced, the bill would expand protected area boundaries and transfer conservation responsibilities to the National Park Service, supporters said.
