The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is the primary federal agency responsible for the conservation, protection, and enhancement of the nationâ¿¿s fish and wildlife and their habitats.
The USFWS National Wildlife Refuge System is comprised of more than 560 national wildlife
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refuges and 3,000 small waterfowl breeding and nesting sites covering nearly 150 million acres across the United States.
These refuges attract more than 47 million annual visitors seeking a variety of unique experiences.
Facilitating access to and within these refuges requires a host of transportation services, with which the USFWS requires assistance.
Through this agreement with Montana State University/Western Transportation Institute (MSU/WTI), USFWS requests MSU/WTI assist the USFWS with a range of wildlife conservation, transit, and technical assistance services for complexes and refuges located within the United States and to support its international programs, when necessary.
This award is entered into under the USFWSâ¿¿s Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit CFDA (1 5. 678) under the Authority of Fish and Wildlife Coordination Act of 1958, 16 U.S.C.661; Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, as amended (16 U.S.C.
4601-4 through 11); Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C.
1531-1543); Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act (16 U.S.C.
2901-2911; 94 Stat.
1322); The Fish and Wildlife Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C.
742a-742j; Stat.
1119), as amended, Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, as amended (16 U.S.C 703-712); The Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982 (CBRA) (16 U.S.C.
3501 et seq.); and the Public Lands Corps Act of 1993, as amended 2005 (16 U.S.C.
1721-1726, P.L.
109-154).