Let's Do Big Things- Save the Snake

photo credit BLM

By Nicole Cordan

Policy and Legal Director

Save Our Wild Salmon

In State of the Union address, President Obama’s salmon joke invoked the spirit of a cherished creature, and through it a culture, a way-of-life, and a bit of our American history – all of which has resonated throughout the country.  While the President might have been off a bit in his facts, he is right that current salmon policies and salmon agencies are inefficient, have wasted money, have cost jobs, and have failed to recover the Northwest’s signature species.   And he is also right to suggest that it’s time for a change.  But what the President didn’t say, and perhaps part of the answer to why his punchline had such a big impact, is what’s at stake if he doesn’t change course on salmon.

From the peaks of the Grand Tetons where it is born, through Yellowstone National Park, across the Continental Divide and then into the rugged mountains of Idaho, northeastern Oregon and southeastern Washington, the Snake River and its tributaries form one of the most important habitats in America.  The Snake River Basin is the highest, wildest, most intact salmon spawning and rearing habitat left in the lower 48 states and it is home to one-of-a-kind salmon – salmon that climb higher and travel further than any other salmon on earth – as well as more than a dozen other endangered species.

The Endangered Species Coalition report, It’s Getting Hot Out There, listed this area as one of the top 10 places in the country to protect for endangered species in a warming world.  It’s no surprise why: this special place, nestled in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest, is a Noah’s Ark for salmon.  While lower elevation salmon habitats in the Columbia River Basin are expected to warm to temperatures too hot to sustain salmon, the Snake River Basin’s waters will remain cool, allowing salmon to survive, thrive, and reseed the rest of the Columbia River. 

This is what’s at stake: these one-of-a-kind creatures and this unparalleled place will be lost to future generations if this generation – this administration – doesn’t change course.

photo credit BLM

Four federal dams on the lower part of the Snake River wreak havoc on salmon migrating to and from this Noah’s Ark.  Just four dams – in a basin which is known as the most dammed watershed on Earth with about 250 large dams – need to be removed to ensure the survival of these magnificent creatures, the more than 140 other species that they feed, the unique place they call home, and the jobs, families and communities that rely on them.

Four dams -- it doesn’t seem like too much to ask, does it?

I’m not suggesting that this path – the path of removing four dams – will be easy.  But given the consequences – the loss if we choose not to protect and reconnect this special place to the creatures that feed it and feed us – the action becomes essential.  And as the President told us in his State of the Union address, it won’t necessarily be easy to build a better future.  But, build a better future we must.  It is a responsibility we hold for the next generation.

In its Spring 2010 Special Issue, Newsweek chose Columbia-Snake River salmon as one of its top 100 places/things to see before they are gone due to climate change. These fish and their rivers were one of just seven such places in the United States. 

One of the top seven.  One of the top ten. 

We are the last generation that gets to decide whether Snake River salmon will exist for our children, and their children.  It is an awesome responsibility.  I want to tell my daughter that we did everything we could to save these creatures for her.  I don’t want to tell her that we had the choice, but we decided to do nothing, or too little, or to stick with the status quo, because it was simply too hard to do what was needed.

The President also reminded us – inspiring some of us – that we are a nation “where anything is possible.  We do big things.  From the earliest days of our founding, America has been the story of ordinary people who dare to dream.  That’s how we win the future.”

Let’s dare to dream of a future where Snake River salmon continue to swim through our Northwest waters, feeding us, our ancient forests, and the more than 140 other species that depend on them for their survival.  Let’s do big things – let’s remove those four dams and bring wild salmon back to our rivers, and good jobs back to our coastal and rural communities.  And let’s win the future – for ourselves and for the generations who come after us.   

***

This is a guest post by Save Our Wild Salmon, as part of our occasional series from Endangered Species Coalition member organizations

Loggerheads need our help

Loggerhead sea turtles have long been victims of encroaching development, poaching and alarmingly frequent incidental take in fishing operations. Pacific loggerhead populations have declined at least 80 percent in just 25 years.

The BP Gulf spill further compounded the plight of the loggerheads, putting them at even greater risk. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) foreshadowed the crisis, writing in a book published four years prior to the spill that "one spill—if it occurred at just the wrong time and place—could be catastrophic to one of these endangered species. Sea turtles are likely to be at greatest risk from oil spills, for example, when they are gathering in a particular area to nest, right after hatching, and when foraging in ocean convergence zones."

The still ongoing effects of the BP spill are taking place in that "wrong time and place", leading to catastrophic impacts on loggerhead sea turtles and their hatchlings. As of August 23rd, 1055 sea turtles have been collected oiled or dead as a result of the spill. The total number of impacted turtles in unquestionably much higher.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is considering whether to up-list the loggerhead from threatened to endangered, thus granting enhanced conservation protections and resources. Reclassification would allow officials to better craft policies to ensure the ongoing presence of loggerheads on our coasts. This urgently needed help is contingent in part on public support.

NMFS is taking public comments on the proposal now. Please take action in support of reclassifying the status of loggerhead turtles today.

The Presbyterian Church's Call to Halt Mass Extinction

This post is a part of our occasional series by Endangered Species Coalition Member Organizations.

By Dr. Tom English, Creation Care Educator with the Presbyterian Church USA.

Why did the Presbyterian Church issue "A Call to Halt Mass Extinction?" Isn't extinction a part of the normal lifecycle of life on this planet? Extinction is normal, however, today's situation is certainly extreme. Current extinction rates are greater than anything the planet has seen in 65 million years, when a large meteor slammed into the Earth and ended the reign of the dinosaurs. The noted Harvard professor, E. O. Wilson, has estimated conservatively that “Human activity has increased extinction between 1,000 and 10,000 times over this level [the normal rate] in the rain forest by reduction of area alone. Clearly we are in the midst of one of the great extinction spasms in geological history.”

In response to this crisis, the Presbyterian Church states: "The Creator-Deliverer calls human communities to work with God to rectify the abuses whereby human impacts upon the Earth are leading to a mass extinction of living species. This mass extinction would fundamentally alter and undermine the life and well-being of the humans and other creatures that survive. It would rob all future generations of the gifts of wholeness and diversity that God intends."

We are in the beginning of the Earth's sixth great mass extinction. This extinction is caused by a variety of factors including: habitat removal, invasive species, human population growth, pollution, and overharvesting. We are removing tropical rain forests at such a rate that they all will be eliminated within this century. More than half of all species live in tropical rainforests, and more than half of those species are endemic to the tropical rain forest. Thus destruction of tropical rain forests will drive more than 25% of Earth's species to extinction this century, unless we change our ways.

In their landmark paper, "Extinction Risk from Climate Change" (Thomas et al. Nature 427, 145–148. January 8, 2004), Thompson et al show that Global Climate Change is having a similar impact on extinction of species as the destruction of tropical rainforests. Hence, the combined impact of both the destruction of tropical rainforest and global climate change, indicate that humanity will cause a mass extinction of more than half of all plant and animal species during the 21st century, unless we change our ways.

Humans are the top-level predator of the planet today, so we will be severely impacted by a mass extinction. Randomly losing one half of the plants and animals in humanity's food web will ruin the food supply system for people over the entire Earth, leading to a collapse of the economic system of many countries. People will attempt to ease their suffering by migration to other countries. Global migration will increase international tensions causing nations to war with one another. Let's make sure that we use our intelligence to create a much better future for our children and future generations.

Dr. English is the President of the TESSI Endangered Species Institute, and an Adjunct Professor at Palomar College. He worked at the U.S. EPA and advised President Carter's Office of Science and Technology Policy.

Call of the Pika

In the first part of our series on the President's Report on Climate Change, we discussed the potential negative effects of temperature change on the polar bear. Another species at great risk due to climate change is the North American Pika.

The North American Pika is a hamster-like relative of rabbits and hares, ranges from 3-5 inches in length and has a densely furred coat that it does not shed and, as such, it can not dissipate heat easily. Its range includes the mountains and foothills of the Western United States and Canada. They're primarily solitary creatures, but they'll often live near each other in talus fields. Hikers may recognize the pika from the shrill whistle it sounds as a warning when potential predators approach. It's an herbivore that eats grasses and other types of vegetation. It does not hibernate, surviving winter by eating vegetation that it has sun dried and stored for later use.

The pika is thought to be the "canary in the coal mine" for global climate change related impacts because they are especially heat sensitive and susceptible to even minor changes in temperature. The pika's normal body temperature is roughly 104 degrees Fahrenheit and even a short exposure of less than an hour to temperatures above 75 degrees Fahrenheit can be fatal. Because of this, pikas seek higher ground as the temperature rises, leaving some previously populated areas locally extinct.

The Journal of Mammology recently published a study showing that pika have disappeared from 9 of the 25 colonies it observed. Further, biologists have observed that of the remaining pika colonies in the Western U.S., they are on average 900 feet further upslope. Because of this and efforts by conservation groups, the USFWS is conducting a status review to determine whether to add the pika to the Endangered Species List. The decision came as a result of a lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity and Earthjustice seeking protection for the species. The USFWS will announce its decision regarding species protection by February 1, 2010.

To find out more about climate change and it's effect of species as well as what you can do to help, please visit the ESC website at www.stopextinction.org.

Victory for Bull Trout and Science

This week the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that it would revisit critical habitat protections put in place for Bull trout by the Bush administration. This decision was in response to a lawsuit by environmental groups asserting the Bush Administration had illegally made cuts in the amount of Bull trout habitat protected under the designation. The Bush administration had reduced by 80 percent the amount of critical habitat proposed for protection by agency scientists.

The is only the latest in the saga of Julie MacDonald, a former Deputy Asst. Secretary at Interior who resigned in 2007 after an internal investigation found that she “bullied” scientists within her own agency and improperly interfered with their recommendations for protections in more than a dozen endangered species decisions. The investigation also found that Ms. MacDonald improperly provided internal department information to industry lobbyists.

Ms. MacDonald’s fingerprints were also on the Bull trout. In 2007, the Endangered Species Coalition organized a scientist fly-in. I and the other field organizers found a handful of scientists from around the country who were willing to fly to Washington and tell members of Congress and their staff what they knew about the lack of scientific integrity at Interior.

I enlisted the help of John Young, a man who had recently retired from a 30-year career as a federal biologist, and was the former Bull trout recovery coordinator for the USFWS. John was initially reluctant to go to D.C. because during previous trips to the nation’s capitol, he felt that members of Congress seemed disinterested during meetings with him and other constituents. In the end, I was able to convince John to come anyway.

While in DC, Young and I visited with Congressional offices on both sides of the capitol. Young spoke about how Ms. MacDonald—in spite of objections raised by USFWS staff—directed the exclusion from critical habitat of all reservoirs, without any analysis of the operations plans of individual reservoirs or the effect of those plans on survival and recovery of bull trout. According to Young, Ms. MacDonald may have also been involved in the burying a 5-year status review and recovery plan for the threatened salmonid as well.

DOI interference in Bull trout protection and recovery may have been even broader than just MacDonald’s influence. In 2004, the Missoulian reported that the economic benefits of Bull trout recovery mysteriously disappeared from the final analysis prepared for the critical habitat designation.

I am pleased to hear that the new Department of Interior, led by former Senator Ken Salazar, is finally revisiting the tainted bull trout decision. This is a good start. But there is more work to do, including at least a dozen other endangered species decisions in which science was pushed aside for political purposes. After the last eight years of Bush-Cheney malfeasance, it will take time to clean up the mess they left at Interior and give imperiled wildlife the protections they deserve.

Derek Goldman
Northern Rockies Field Representative
Endangered Species Coalition

Support Derek's work to protect bull trout, gray wolves, lynx and other endangered species in the west by donating to the Endangered Organizer Fund. http://bit.ly/Wy45s
Derek can not continue to protect wildlife and wild places and advocate for scientific integrity without our support. Please adopt Derek today! http://bit.ly/Wy45s

Safeguarding Species in a Warming World

Two stories in Maine caught my eye this week that I think sum up why we're working hard to ensure that any global warming legislation coming out of Congress helps safeguard species at risk of extinction and all our natural resources.

Wednesday was the 10th anniversary of the removal of the Edwards Dam – a hydro dam on the Kennebec river north of Augusta. The removal of the dam opened up 17 miles of fish habitat and started helping restore the river and the towns that surround it. After that, the other benefits started to flow. According to the Kennebec Journal:

Then the birds, insects and other critters from the woods came back. So did oxygen, stirred up by the river flowing faster and over and around gravel bars, greatly improving water quality.

"This is the health of flowing, oxygenated water," Viles said. "The river smells great. The river attracts all sorts of life, including paddlers and fishermen and -women and those of us of all ages compelled to skip rocks.”

"The financial, natural and emotional value of the new river and the whole Kennebec watershed just goes up and up. I think this river, with friends like us, is going to be really healthy."

The other story comes from just the day before, when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that $6.1 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act would be used to help with dam removal on the Penobscot River, one of three rivers in Maine with populations of Atlantic salmon recently added to the Endangered Species List as endangered.

The investment will help local efforts to remove two dams and create a bypass at a third, which will add nearly 1,000 miles in fish habitat. Not only will it benefit imperiled salmon and other fish, but Village Soup also highlights these benefits:

Work to deconstruct the Great Works dam[the first dam], combined with predam removal scientific monitoring, will yield nearly $5 million in jobs for the region and is expected to employ nearly 155 people in restoration-related engineering and heavy construction jobs (the equivalent of 38 annualized jobs).

The work, over a 24-month project period, will create jobs for construction workers, technical experts including engineers and hydrologists, work for local businesses such as nurseries and contractors, as well as jobs related to scientific monitoring.

“In addition to the immediate jobs created by the projects, stronger and healthier coastal communities will boost our nation’s long-term economic health,” said Commerce under secretary of oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco.

So what does all this have to do with global warming? These are two examples of the benefits we could see not only for endangered species but for our communities as we implement efforts to safeguard species and our wild places from the impacts that we are starting to experience from global warming. Other types of projects might include rebuilding wetlands and coastal marshes, nourishing coral reefs, strengthening headwater forests, restoring natural floodplains, and protecting and connecting grassland and mountain corridors to serve as migratory paths for wildlife.

When the House passed their global warming legislation last month, our Representatives included important policy framework for protecting natural resources from the impacts of global warming, but the funding levels fell far short of the need. Now, the Senate needs to take this strong framework and support it with an adequate funding level of at least five percent of the potential pollution credit revenues. Please help make this happen by contacting your Senators today.

We know our nation's wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction are facing an even harder path to recovery due to global warming's impacts. But, as the two stories from Maine demonstrate, we can help safeguard species and improve our lives at the same time. Sound good to you?

White House Report: Climate Change Killing Species

The Obama Administration released a report last week that stated unequivocally that global warming is happening now and impacting our communities, our health and our natural resources. It also confirmed that climate change is already having impacts on animal and plant species throughout the United States.

	The report, Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States, finds that: About two-thirds of the world’s polar bears are projected to be gone by the middle of this century. It is projected that there will be no wild polar bears in Alaska in 75 years
	The pika, a small mammal whose habitat is limited to cold areas near the tops of mountains, is losing suitable habitat and more than one-third of the populations have gone extinct in recent decades.
	Many migratory bird species are arriving earlier. Large-scale shifts have occurred in the ranges of species and the timing of the seasons and animal migration, and are very likely to continue.
	Trees and other plants are shifting ranges. There will be fewer wildflowers as global warming causes earlier spring snowmelt. Fires, insect pests, disease pathogens, and invasive weed species have increased, and these trends are likely to continue.
	Salmon and other coldwater fish species in the United States are at particular risk from warming. We may loose over half of the wild trout populations from the southern Appalachian Mountains, 60% of western trout populations, and 90% of bull trout.
	Climate change already is causing significant alterations in marine ecosystems with important implications for fisheries and the people who depend on them. Some of these changes have already led to coral bleaching, shifts in species ranges, increased storm intensity, dramatic reductions in sea ice and other significant changes to the nation’s coastlines and marine ecosystems.

Wildlife, birds, fish and plants are going to need lots of help to adapt to a changing world. Programs and funding are needed to rebuild wetlands and coastal marshes, nourish coral reefs, strengthen headwater forests, restore natural floodplains, protect and connect grassland and mountain corridors to serve as migratory paths for wildlife.

Congress is currently debating a climate change and energy bill, which includes programs to safeguard natural resources from the impacts of climate change. Industry lobbyists are trying to weaken the bill, including removing these key natural resources provisions. We are working with our member organizations to secure programs and funding that will safeguard our natural resources and ecosystems from the worst impacts of climate change.

Click here to send a letter to your member of Congress to ask them to support the natural resources adaptation provisions and funding in the climate change bill.

Thank you for help to save polar bears, pikas, pacific salmon, migratory birds, wildflowers, coral and thousands of other endangered species.

Wolverine sighted in Colorado for first time in 90 years

Today, the Wildlife Conservation Society announced that they have tracked a wolverine into Colorado, marking the first time the animal has been found in the state since 1919. The wolverine, named M56, is a young male that was captured in April in Grand Teton National Park. Scientists have been tracking him with a radio collar for the last 2 months as he’s traveled roughly 500 miles.

The sighting comes at an opportune time for the wolverine, as USFWS is reconsidering its ESA status as part of a settlement stemming from a 2008 lawsuit. The suit was filed challenging the agency’s decision not to extend Endangered Species Act protections to wolverines after a Freedom of Information Act request uncovered documents that supported listing. (The suit was filed by Earthjustice, Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Biological Diversity, Conservation Northwest, Friends of the Clearwater, Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Idaho Conservation League, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center and Wyoming Outdoor Council.) The documents suggest that biologists within the agency concluded that protection for wolverines was warranted, but were overruled by political appointees within the Bush administration seeking to prevent a second species receiving ESA protection due to climate change. (The polar bear was the first species listed due to the effects of global warming).

The wolverine occupies Arctic and Arctic-like habitat at higher elevations and is dependent upon snow for its survival, making it particularly at risk of further habitat loss due to climate change. Wolverines rely on persistent spring snowpack for their dens, however scientific data indicate a chronic, earlier spring snowmelt in many parts of its range. The settlement calls for FWS to consider the projected effects of climate change on the wolverine’s habitat, including the Rocky Mountains and the North Cascades.

The settlement calls for a new status determination by December 2010. There are currently thought to be less than 500 wolverines in the continental US.

To learn more about the ways species are at risk due to climate change and what can be done to protect them, please visit the Endangered Species Coalition website.

Celebrate Endangered Species Day this Friday!

Endangered Species Day is this Friday, May 15th! Started in 2006 by the United States Congress, Endangered Species Day is a celebration of our nation’s wildlife and wild places. This year, millions of people will celebrate Endangered Species Day on Friday and throughout the month of May.

America is blessed with amazing wildlife: bald eagles and peregrine falcons flying in our skies, gray wolves and grizzly bears roaming the wilderness, Canada lynx and spotted owls in ancient forests, salmon and steelhead spawning in wild rivers, and whales and sea turtles in our coastal waters.

Celebrate Endangered Species Day and our nation's amazing wildlife and wild places.
To learn about Endangered Species Day, visit www.EndangeredSpeciesDay.org

For Endangered Species Day, parks, wildlife refuges, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, museums, libraries, schools, agencies, businesses, conservation organizations, religious organizations and community groups hold events to highlight the everyday actions that people can take to help protect our nation’s wildlife heritage. Events are happening this Friday and throughout the month of May. For an event near you, check out the list of Endangered Species Day events.

Plan your own event or activity with our Endangered Species Day toolkit. You can get downloadable brochures, flyers, stickers and more!

For teachers and other educators, we have developed educational materials including lesson plans and handouts. Check out the Endangered Species Day educational materials.

Children can submit artwork, posters and pictures to the Endangered Species Day Artwork Contest.

If your children are in the Girl Scouts, they can earn an Endangered Species Day Girl Scout badge!

Find out things you can do at home to protect endangered species. Start by picking one to do on Endangered Species Day and do the rest throughout the year.

Endangered Species Day is a great opportunity for people young and old to learn about wildlife, birds, fish and plants in your area and the everyday actions that you can take to help protect our nation’s disappearing wildlife and last remaining wild lands.

In addition to the Endangered Species Coalition, the many organizations supporting Endangered Species Day include: The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the Girl Scouts of the U.S., the National Association of Biology Teachers, National Wildlife Federation, and the Native Plant Conservation Campaign.

Get involved at www.EndangeredSpeciesDay.org

Senator Feinstein Introduces Endangered Species Day Resolution

Endangered Species Day is a celebration of our nation's wildlife and wild places. Started in 2006 by the United States Congress, Endangered Species Day is the third Friday of May.

This year, Senator Feinstein has introduced a resolution designating Friday, May 15th 2009 as Endangered Species Day. The resolution encourages the people of the United States to become educated about, and aware of, threats to species, success stories in species recovery, and opportunities to promote species conservation worldwide. It also encourages schools to teach about the threats to endangered species around the world and efforts to restore endangered species.

You can send a letter to your Senator asking them to support the Endangered Species Day resolution.

Endangered Species Day is an opportunity for people young and old to learn about the importance of protecting endangered species and everyday actions that people can take to help protect our nation's disappearing wildlife and last remaining open space.

Every year, thousands of people throughout the country celebrate Endangered Species Day at parks, wildlife refuges, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, libraries, schools and community centers.

Protecting America's wildlife and plants today is a legacy we leave to our children and grandchildren, so that all Americans can experience the rich variety of native species that help to define our nation.

Endangered Species Day is next Friday, May 15th 2009. Get involved at www.EndangeredSpeciesDay.org

Obama Administration close to decision on ESA regs

According to the New York Times and Greenwire, the Obama Administration is preparing their decision on whether to overturn the Bush Endangered Species Act regulations.

Greenwire writes, "the Interior Department is proceeding with a final rule revamping changes that the Bush administration made to Endangered Species Act regulations in its final months."

To see the article, visit http://tinyurl.com/interiorarticle

The Department of Interior has sent a revised rule to the Office of Management and Budget. The rule could be released as early as Monday or in a few weeks. No news about the Bush Administration's polar bear rule and whether they will overturn that.

President Obama will decide whether to overturn ESA regulations very soon! Only a few more days to sign Polar Bear petition!

Our goal is to have 10,000 signatures by next week. We are at 3,922 signatures right now. Please help us reach our goal!

Sign the Polar Bear petition today! http://tinyurl.com/polarbearpetition

If you have signed already, please invite your friends to join you.

Thanks for your help to save endangered species.

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

America is blessed with amazing wildlife and wild places: bald eagles and peregrine falcons flying in our skies, gray wolves and grizzly bears roaming the wilderness, Canada lynx and spotted owls in ancient forests, salmon and steelhead spawning in wild rivers, and whales and sea turtles in our coastal waters.

While you celebrate Earth Day today, here are some easy things you can do every day to protect our environment.

10 Things You Can Do at Home to Protect Endangered Species.

1) Learn about endangered species in your area
Teach your friends and family about the wonderful wildlife, birds, fish and plants that live near you.

2) Visit a national wildlife refuge, park or other open space
These protected lands provide habitat to many native wildlife, birds, fish and plants.

3) Make your home wildlife friendly
Secure garbage in shelters or cans with locking lids, feed pets indoors and lock pet doors at night to avoid attracting wild animals into your home.

4) Provide habitat for wildlife by planting native vegetation in your yard
Native plants provide food and shelter for native wildlife. Attracting native insects like bees and butterflies can help pollinate your plants.

5) Minimize use of herbicides and pesticides
Herbicides and pesticides may keep yards looking nice but they are in fact hazardous pollutants that affect wildlife at many levels.

6) Slow down when driving
Many animals live in developed areas and this means they must navigate a landscape full of human hazards.

7) Recycle and buy sustainable products
Buy recycled paper, sustainable products like bamboo and Forest Stewardship Council wood products to protect forest species.

8) Never purchase products made from threatened or endangered species
Overseas trips can be exciting and fun, and everyone wants a souvenir. But sometimes the souvenirs are made from species nearing extinction.

9) Report any harassment or shooting of threatened and endangered species
Harassing wildlife is cruel and illegal. Shooting, trapping, or forcing a threatened or endangered animal into captivity is also illegal and can lead to their extinction.

10) Protect wildlife habitat
Perhaps the greatest threat that faces many species is the widespread destruction of habitat. Scientists tell us the best way to protect endangered species is to protect the special places where they live.

For more information, visit our 10 Easy Things You Can Do at Home to Protect Endangered Species at www.stopextinction.org

Thanks for caring about our nation's wildlife and wild places!

Interior Secretary Salazar hears from Congress, scientists and conservationists

Yesterday, I went to the last Department of Interior hearing in San Francisco on off-shore oil drilling. It was so inspiring to see hundreds of people supporting strong environmental protections and opposing drilling off our coasts! Several speakers asked Secretary Salazar to overturn the Bush Administration’s regulations that weakened the Endangered Species Act.

Representative Lynn Woolsey said it best when she asked “Mr. Secretary, isn’t it time to rollback the Bush Administration’s revisions of the Endangered Species Act policy?” For that, she received a standing ovation, long applause and cheers from the crowd.

You can see a webcast of the event at http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=57278

Members of Congress, scientists and conservation organizations urged U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to act quickly to rescind two rules passed in the final days of the Bush administration that weaken the Endangered Species Act. One of these rules exempts thousands of federal activities, including those that generate greenhouse gases, from review under the Endangered Species Act, and the other sharply limits protections for the threatened polar bear. Under the Bush administration rules, the impacts of such drilling on climate and the polar bear would be exempt from consideration under the Endangered Species Act.

On behalf of our millions of individual members, I urged Secretary Salazar to act immediately to protect our nation’s wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction. If the rules are allowed to remain in place, the Fish and Wildlife Service will not be able to consider and mitigate such impacts. Many wildlife species are threatened by oil and gas development along the outer continental shelf -- including polar bears, stellar sea lions, Guadalupe fur seals, Pacific walruses, southern sea otters, blue whales and sea turtles. Greenhouse gas emissions are currently predicted to result in loss of two-thirds of the world’s polar bear population by 2050. Saving these species from offshore oil development and climate change will require the full protections of the Endangered Species Act.

With President Obama and Secretary Salazar’s leadership, the Department of the Interior now has the opportunity to not only repair all of the damage done to environmental protections, but to also take environmental programs a step further in protecting America’s wildlife and wild places. The Obama administration has an opportunity to root out corruption, ethical failures and the shocking abuse of science that we have seen in the previous administration and to restore scientific.

Congress has given the Secretary of the Interior the opportunity to overturn both the section 7 and section 4d endangered species regulations put in place by the Bush administration, but he needs to act by May 9th to use these special provisions.

Sign our petition to Secretary Salazar at
http://www.change.org/esc/actions/view/petition_to_save_the_polar_bear

For more than three decades, the Endangered Species Act has faithfully and successfully served as one of our nation’s landmark wildlife protection laws, providing a safety net for the wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction. More than 85 percent of American voters support a strong Endangered Species Act. Secretary Salazar must begin to undo years of damage to endangered species protections by the Bush administration. The enforcement and implementation of the Endangered Species Act have suffered tremendously as the Bush administration advanced policies and regulations that stripped wildlife of protections. The Obama administration must overturn policies and regulations that greatly undermine the protection and recovery of threatened and endangered species.

Time is Running Out for the Polar Bear

Time is running out for the polar bear. As their sea ice habitat disappears, polar bears are starving and drowning, and mothers and cubs are dying as their snow dens collapse on them due to a warming climate. In addition, pollution from oil and gas drilling threatens to destroy what's left of the polar bear's disappearing habitat.

The fate of the polar bears and other endangered species relies on their Endangered Species Act protections being restored. In their last days, the Bush Administration weakened protections for the polar bear and other endangered species. As we've written, Congress passed a bill that gives the Obama administration 60 days to overturn the Bush administration's regulations that weakened the Endangered Species Act and eliminated essential protections for the polar bear.

Secretary Salazar has until May 9, 2009 to overturn the Bush Administration's regulations that weaken the Endangered Species Act. Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar must take this critically important step to restore scientific integrity at the Department of Interior. The Endangered Species Coalition staff and members will be meeting with the Department of Interior to ask them to restore protections for the polar bear and other endangered species.

The Endangered Species Coalition has created a petition to Secretary Salazar asking him to restore protections for polar bears and other endangered species.

You can help build support for restoring endangered species protections by signing the petition to save the polar bear.

Thank you for help to save polar bears, gray wolves, canada lynx, pacific salmon and thousands of other endangered species.

Global Warming threatens another, but the cooldown on listing may be over

If I am remembering correctly, today we have a new milestone to recognize with the Obama Administration: their first listing proposal of a species in need of added protection. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) is proposing that the population of eulachon found in Washington, Oregon and California waters be considers a distinct population and that it be listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act. (announcement available here). You might also know eulachon as candlefish, Columbia River smelt and hooligan – my particular favorite.

Part of the reason for mentioning this here is to highlight a contrast with the last administration. During the past eight years, there was a dramatic and dangerous dearth of listing activity – leaving hundreds of species in need to either wait on the candidate list or go with absolutely no review or protection. Preventing protection was one of their many sad legacies that we must overcome. Much more work needs to be done to meet our responsibility to our children and grandchildren to protect endangered species and the places they call home.

So it is with some optimism that I view today’s announcement as perhaps the first step by the Obama Administration in resuscitating the listing program. We surely will have our disagreements – and already have - but we are looking forward to working together to help protect imperiled species and are happy to see progress already being made.

About the proposed listing
The fish is thought to actually benefit from some effort already underway for the sake of other fish, such as salmon. But not enough apparently. According to the Fisheries Service, the main threat the fish faces is global warming, which is altering ocean conditions. They are also being caught as bycatch from the shrimping industry.

The proposal for listing was spurred by a petition from the Cowlitz Indian Tribe.

There is now a 60 day comment period open. NMFS is also gathering information regarding where critical habitat should be designated and if you’ve seen any in Northern California lately. So, keep an eye out when your next on the Klamath.

Senator Boxer Rocks the Senate Floor in Support of Endangered Species Protections

We are working with Congress and our members to defeat an amendment that will block the Obama Administration's ability to restore some key endangered species protections.

Today, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) gave a passionate speech on the floor of the Senate in opposition to the amendment. As part of her testimony, she reads a letter from the Endangered Species Coalition and over 100 of our member organizations. She gave such a compelling argument in support of strong endangered species protection, science and good government. Everyone should watch it and be inspired.

See Senator Boxer speech in this video:



Last week, the House passed a bill that included language that empowers the
Obama Administration to overturn the Bush Administration rules that weakened the Endangered Species Act and blocked conservation measures for polar bears. This week, the Senate will vote on the bill. However, Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin are furiously trying to strip the provision from the bill.

The Senate will vote on the bill by the end of the week. The Endangered Species Coalition and our member organizations are launching an all-out effort to pass the bill and empower the Obama Administration to restore protections for the polar bear and other endangered species.

Congress and the Obama Administration can overturn the Bush Administration's
regulations that weaken the Endangered Species Act. But, they need to hear from us right now. If you have not already, please send a letter to your Senators urging them to pass the bill that restores protections for endangered species.

President Obama Restores Endangered Species Protections

Great news – President Obama announced today a restoration of independent, outside reviews for how government projects and decisions impact endangered species. President Bush changed when these reviews are implemented with a set of new regulations that went into effects just five days before Barack Obama became President.

At a celebration for the Department of the Interior’s 160th anniversary, President Obama included this announcement:

Finally, today I've signed a memorandum that will help restore the scientific process to its rightful place at the heart of the Endangered Species Act, a process undermined by past administrations. The work of scientists and experts in my administration – including right here in the Interior Department -- will be respected. For more than three decades, the Endangered Species Act has successfully protected our nation's most threatened wildlife, and we should be looking for ways to improve it -- not weaken it.

Throughout our history, there's been a tension between those who've sought to conserve our natural resources for the benefit of future generations, and those who have sought to profit from these resources. But I'm here to tell you this is a false choice. With smart, sustainable policies, we can grow our economy today and preserve the environment for ourselves, our children, and our grandchildren. That is what we must do.

This change is a great first step, but some of the Bush Administration changes are still in place. Congress can help make it easier for the Obama Administration to finish the job with a provision in the omnibus spending bill being debated in the Senate this week. If you haven’t already, please contact your Senators and urge them to support protecting these provisions from amendments, which we are expecting to be offered in the next few days.

Additional resources:

• ESC's media statement
• President Obama's Memo
• Details on the Bush Administration's changes

Update: View President Obama's announcement:

How the Omnibus helps endangered species

The U.S. House of Representatives is expected today to debate an omnibus bill that sets the federal government’s budget for the rest of the fiscal year. The bill has some good news for endangered species.

First, it includes budget increases for many endangered species programs, which have been ailing for years. For the main Fish and Wildlife Service programs, which include listing and critical habitat designation; consultations; candidate protections; and recovery efforts, there is an increase of almost $7.5 million – or approximately five percent. Within the National Marine Fisheries Services, marine mammal protections gained $1.5 million (or almost four percent). We had been advocating for significantly larger increases to help combat staffing shortages and the growing waiting list of candidates in need of protection, but the increases will be helpful and are appreciated. Regrettably, there were decreases for funding for sea turtles (well below even what President Bush’s budget had recommended) and the Bureau of Land Management’s threatened and endangered species program – despite the growing pressure that will be coming with more energy development of all types. More broadly, there is also help for developing a national strategy to protect wildlife and natural resources from the effects of global warming.

The bill also provides hope for endangered species in another big way. Text in the bill would grant Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and the yet to be confirmed Secretary of Commerce 60 days to review and possibly repeal the Bush Administration’s last minute regulations that undermined endangered species protections. Secretary Salazar could also repeal or amend the special rule put into place that impacts polar bear protections.

We’ve been working hard along with our member groups to undo these bad rules and it is great to see this included in the bill. However, there is still work to do. Some lawmakers have called this language a “backdoor” attempt to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. They are wrong; the repeal would actually just return us to the status quo of the last 20 years. But that may not prevent them from trying to offer amendments that would remove the language. If they do attack these provisions, we’ll need your help. Stay tuned and we’ll let you know more as this develops.

p.s. other good news came today with expansion of critical habitat for the Canada lynx, which had its original designation slashed by political interference from a Bush Administration appointee.

Change and Hope for Endangered Species

With the election of President Barack Obama, we have the unprecedented opportunity to restore protections for our nation's disappearing wildlife and last remaining wild places.

Before leaving office, the Bush Administration snuck through midnight regulations that would weaken the Endangered Species Act. The regulations make it harder to protect polar bears, gray wolves, Canadian lynx, pacific salmon and thousands of other endangered species.

The Endangered Species Act is the safety net for our nation's wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction. The Bush Administration's new regulations cut a hole in the safety net and take scientists out of the decision making process.

There are several ways that we can restore the protections of the Endangered Species Act. The Obama Administration can overturn the regulations. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has said that he will review the rules. Or Congress can pass a bill. House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Jo Rahall has introduced a bill H.J. Resolution 18 that would use the Congressional Review Act to overturn the Bush Administration's regulations.

If you want to overturn the Bush Administration’s last minute regulations that weaken the Endangered Species Act, you can help in a number of ways:

Write your Members of Congress and urge them to save endangered species by co-sponsoring H.J. Res. 18 which would use the Congressional Review Act to overturn the Bush Administration's regulations. Send a letter to your Members of Congress to ask them to support the bill to overturn the Bush Administration's Endangered Species Act regulations.

Join us in applauding President Obama’s stated commitment to protect endangered species and restore scientific integrity. Urge President Obama to immediately reverse regulations that weaken the Endangered Species Act and to take steps to strengthen endangered species protections, including

• extend the Endangered Species Act’s safety net to all species in need
• strengthen habitat protections
• address global warming impacts on threatened and endangered species
• provide adequate funding for endangered species programs

Sign the Petition to President Obama to save endangered species

We must act now to restore strong protections for endangered species. Thank you for your help in saving our nation’s wildlife, fish and plants on the brink of extinction.

Mahalo to Interior, I think.

Yesterday, the Department of Interior announced their intention to propose listing 45 plants, two birds and one insect that are all endemic to the Hawaiian island of Kauai to the Endangered Species List. Their proposal will also include designation of critical habitat that reportedly encompasses all but one of these species (the latter being left out over concerns of alerting poachers as to where to find it).

This decade has seen criminally few species offered the protection of the Endangered Species Act, thus a proposal to list so many at once seems on one level to be a great thing. I am glad that they are. However, from listening in to yesterday's media call and reading the press materials, I have many remaining questions about this proposal. So here is an attempt to explore some of the intermixing thoughts that didn't necessarily get fully explored in our press release.

“An Ecosystem Approach”
While there is some dispute as to whether or not it really is a new idea, Interior officials are highly touting this as an innovative means of protecting multiple species by protecting their ecosystem. I like the concept behind this and I appreciate the recognition that species are often endangered – or cannot necessarily recover – due to problems with the system as a whole. It is hard to imagine an instance where a species would be in danger and the ecosystem is not out of whack.

And Hawaii is a very special place when it comes to ecosystems. Given Hawaii's relative isolation from other land, it has a great concentration of unique biological diversity. As mentioned above, all 48 of these species only exist naturally on the island of Kauai. This automatically gives them a common vulnerability to natural disasters and global warming. Furthermore, where they overlap (and the announcement says the 48 species exist in 6 different types of ecosystems) they then share common threats from things such as habitat destruction by feral pigs and invasive species.

Part of my concern with this approach is for what information we may not obtain by neglecting to study species individually. Indeed, Interior cites their lack of knowledge about each species separately as part of the desire to do this on a more macro level. What if by focusing only on the common areas these species share, we neglect to protect an area that an individual species needs to stave off extinction?

It's before my time, but I've also thought the Northwest Forest Plan was developed as an ecosystem-wide means of trying to protect dozens or hundreds of species with one common plan – even though the main attention has focused on indicator species such as the Northern Spotted Owl and salmon (which continue to indicate trouble). The past many years have demonstrated just how bad things can become when a President's administration does not agree with the plan.

Critical Concerns
There also seems to be a bit of a disconnect between the pride of protecting the ecosystem for the benefit of these 48 species and the fact that 90% of the land they are proposing to designate as critical habitat is already protected as critical habitat for other species. How does the ecosystem gain protection in this instance? Only 1,646 of the proposed 26,028 acres of critical habitat will receive new protections. And of the new land, most, according to a discussion on yesterday's media call, is already being protected by the Kauai Watershed Alliance and their work with The Nature Conservancy. I trust they are doing great work and looking at their photos I'm tempted to give them all of my money to protect those places, but how do the 48 species being listed benefit if there is no real increase in protected habitat? They are endangered now and 90% of what we are protecting for them is already protected.

Listing Drought
I am also left fighting myself not just to say, “it's about darn time!” The Bush Administration has failed to protect America's natural heritage. And their tragic disregard for the law and the plants, fish and wildlife in need clouds the celebration that should come with this announcement. On one level, it is great that they are proposing to protect 48 species. On another level I know this proposal almost doubles the number of species they have listed under the Endangered Species Act, which I believe is only 51 since 2001. Their entire time in office and they have only listed 51 species to show for themselves, while thousands await attention! By comparison, President GHW Bush listed 56 per year! President Clinton did 62 per year!

I also know that just 6 months ago, this administration was promising lawmakers to propose listing for 71 species, by the end of September (which was the end of the government's fiscal year). If you are charitable, you can count the press release as being close enough for 48. That still leaves 23 species with no protection offered and 23 promises to Congress unfulfilled.

Even with all of my varied thoughts and concerns, I do want to say thank you to the Department of Interior for recognizing the need to protect these 48 plants, birds and lone insect. But now, where are the other 23 you've promised and what of the hundreds of others on the candidate list? They are in dire straights too.

For more info on the new proposal, see the Associated Press article.