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Pika's in Trouble
Monday, January 14, 2008
Denver Post January 14, 2007
Mountain critters' disappearance may be a global warning
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Don't Let the Bush Administration Open the Door to the Timber Industry
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
On December 26, 2007, the U.S. Forest Service announced its intent to begin a national rulemaking that could weaken regulations protecting more than 4.4 million acres of Colorado's undeveloped national forest roadless areas as well as 9.3 million acres of roadless areas in Idaho's national forests.
These areas currently enjoy protection under the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule, but through this process they would be removed and the door could be opened to mining, logging, road construction, oil and gas development as well as other special interests.
The U.S. Forest Service is accepting comments on this proposal — the time to act is now! Please, sign the letter below to let the Forest Service know that you want all of Colorado's and Idaho's roadless areas protected. Ask them not to weaken the current protections provided by the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.
With your help, we can keep these areas pristine. We encourage you to include your own personal comments — comment emails are much more effective when you take the time to add your own thoughts.
Here's a sample letter you can send to the Forest Service.....
One-third of Colorado's National Forests are roadless backcountry. These lands are the heart of the wild areas left in the Rockies and provide vital habitats for fish and wildlife and watersheds that supply clean drinking water. They are valuable for hunters, hikers, anglers and everyone who wants to keep Colorado special. These pristine areas represent our national heritage and it is our duty to protect them so that future generations may enjoy them as well.
Idaho contains over 9.3 million acres of National Forest roadless areas — the most of any state outside of Alaska. Idaho's roadless backcountry makes up the core of the last intact forest ecosystem in the lower 48 states — the last place where all of the native plants, fish and wildlife — from the smallest plant to the largest predator — can still be found.
As these pristine wild lands become scarcer on our national landscape, we need to think ahead to guard those quiet, special places where we escape the noise and crowds of everyday life. These areas belong to all Americans and managing them conscientiously is of great importance to me.
I write also to ask that you fully consider the impacts of logging, road construction, mining and other industrial development in roadless areas. Such activities will have irreversible impacts on the clean drinking water they supply, the vital habitat they provide for fish and wildlife, and the countless recreational opportunities that exist on these unspoiled wild areas in Idaho. It is important that these backcountry areas in our national forests are protected.
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Administration Delays Decision to List Polar Bear as Threatened
Monday, January 7, 2008
The U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife today announced it would miss its January 9 deadline for recommending listing the polar bear as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act. A "threatened" listing would represent the first major Endangered Species Act (ESA) initiative taken by the U.S. government because of global warming. The ESA defines a threatened species as one likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. A recent U.S. Geological Survey report indicated that if global warming continues unchecked, two-thirds of the world’s polar bears-and all of America’s polar bears-could disappear by 2050. The Department of Fish and Wildlife says it plans to announce its recommendation within a month’s time.
Statement of Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope
"We can’t wait until the last polar bear drowns before we deal with global warming. Polar bears would be listed today if it weren’t for powerful special interests fighting the decision at every step."
"We have the facts and the science. The question isn’t whether or not polar bears are in danger. The question is whether or not our leaders have the will to deal with global warming and its consequences."
"We have the tools to prevent more Arctic ice from melting. It’s time to use them. We can change the polar bear’s fate, just as we changed the bald eagle’s fate when ESA listing brought it back from the brink of extinction."
"The sooner our government recognizes that global warming is a problem, the sooner we’ll be able to deal with it."
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Polar Bears
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
NY Times
Editorial
Of Two Minds on Polar Bears
Published: January 2, 2008
Two agencies in the Department of the Interior are nearing significant yet contradictory decisions that will affect the fate of one of America's iconic animal species, the polar bear.
As early as this week , the Fish and Wildlife Service could list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, the result of severe habitat loss caused by global warming and the melting of Arctic sea ice. About the same time, the Minerals Management Service will announce its final decision to sell oil leases covering nearly 30 million acres of polar bear habitat in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast.
Listing the polar bear would trigger a series of protections, including, in time, identifying habitat critical to the bears' survival. It would also impose obligations on all federal agencies to avoid actions that could hurt the bears' prospects. But the minerals service, where the wishes of the oil and gas industry carry great weight, has a history of doing as it pleases. Environmental groups and members of the House and Senate are thus asking Dirk Kempthorne, the interior secretary, to declare a timeout, postponing Chukchi Sea lease sales for three years pending further scientific study.
The polar bears' plight raises larger issues, including the nation's reliance on fossil fuels, which produce the greenhouse gases that are destroying the bears' habitat. It also calls into question the Bush administration's unsustainable strategy of trying to drill its way to energy independence. Congress has finally recognized the pointlessness of that by passing an energy bill giving greater emphasis to conservation and alternative fuels.
The urgent and immediate question, though, is the future of the polar bear, which is bleak enough without further stresses. Everyone agrees that the overwhelming threat is the loss of sea ice, where the bears hunt for food and nurture their young. Yet there is also wide recognition among federal scientists, even in the minerals service, that the many activities associated with oil drilling — the seismic tests, the vast increase in ship traffic, the noise, the potential spills — can only weaken the bear's resilience.
Mr. Kempthorne should intervene, get his agencies on the same page and make clear that his first priority is to protect the environment and the polar bear.
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Virginia Ridge and Valley Act
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
House Passes the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, Creates Six New Wilderness Areas and Two National Scenic Areas
Step on the Path to Protecting What’s Left of America’s Wild Places
On Tuesday, October 23, the House of Representatives voted to create almost 50,000 acres of new wilderness by passing HR 1011, the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, sponsored by Representative Rick Boucher (D-Va.). The bill establishes six new Wilderness areas and two National Scenic Areas in Virginia’s Jefferson National Forest.
"This vote to pass the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act is an important step towards protecting what’s left of America’s wild legacy," said Sierra Club representative Myke Bybee.
"We’re running out of truly wild places where families can camp, hike, hunt and fish. There are only a handful of places left like this that haven’t been logged, mined, drilled, or built on. The majority of our public lands are open for development of some kind," Bybee said. "Wilderness designation is one of the best tools we have to protect what’s left of our forests and mountains. Congress is recognizing that more and more with legislation like this."
Wilderness designation offers the highest form of protection for public lands. As National Scenic Areas, Smyth County’s Seng Mountain and Bear Creek will be protected from development but will allow mountain biking and limited motorized access. Areas slated for wilderness designation include:
• Stone Mountain, a 3,270-acre stretch of forest adjacent to the North Fork of the Powell River.
• Raccoon Branch, 4223 acres of rugged, high-ridged country prized by hunters, anglers, hikers, and horseback riders.
• Brush Mountain, 4,794 acres of slope characterized by its remoteness and opportunities for solitude.
• Brush Mountain East, 3,769 acres of remote country with stunning creek and mountain views.
• Garden Mountain, 3,291 acres that extend along the rugged south face of Garden Mountain, bordered by the Appalachian Trail.
• Hunting Camp Creek, 8,470 acres of remote country crossed by the Appalachian Trail.
• Lynn Camp Creek, a 3,226-acre tract of forest that includes the northern slope of Brushy Mountain and tranquil Lynn Camp Creek, as well as parts of the Appalachian Trail.
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House Passes the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, Creates Six New Wilderness Areas and Two National Scenic Areas
Step on the Path to Protecting What’s Left of America’s Wild Places
On Tuesday, October 23, the House of Representatives voted to create almost 50,000 acres of new wilderness by passing HR 1011, the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, sponsored by Representative Rick Boucher (D-Va.). The bill establishes six new Wilderness areas and two National Scenic Areas in Virginia’s Jefferson National Forest.
"This vote to pass the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act is an important step towards protecting what’s left of America’s wild legacy," said Sierra Club representative Myke Bybee.
"We’re running out of truly wild places where families can camp, hike, hunt and fish. There are only a handful of places left like this that haven’t been logged, mined, drilled, or built on. The majority of our public lands are open for development of some kind," Bybee said. "Wilderness designation is one of the best tools we have to protect what’s left of our forests and mountains. Congress is recognizing that more and more with legislation like this."
Wilderness designation offers the highest form of protection for public lands. As National Scenic Areas, Smyth County’s Seng Mountain and Bear Creek will be protected from development but will allow mountain biking and limited motorized access. Areas slated for wilderness designation include:
• Stone Mountain, a 3,270-acre stretch of forest adjacent to the North Fork of the Powell River.
• Raccoon Branch, 4223 acres of rugged, high-ridged country prized by hunters, anglers, hikers, and horseback riders.
• Brush Mountain, 4,794 acres of slope characterized by its remoteness and opportunities for solitude.
• Brush Mountain East, 3,769 acres of remote country with stunning creek and mountain views.
• Garden Mountain, 3,291 acres that extend along the rugged south face of Garden Mountain, bordered by the Appalachian Trail.
• Hunting Camp Creek, 8,470 acres of remote country crossed by the Appalachian Trail.
• Lynn Camp Creek, a 3,226-acre tract of forest that includes the northern slope of Brushy Mountain and tranquil Lynn Camp Creek, as well as parts of the Appalachian Trail.
You can permanently link to this entry at this location
House Passes the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, Creates Six New Wilderness Areas and Two National Scenic Areas
Step on the Path to Protecting What’s Left of America’s Wild Places
On Tuesday, October 23, the House of Representatives voted to create almost 50,000 acres of new wilderness by passing HR 1011, the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act, sponsored by Representative Rick Boucher (D-Va.). The bill establishes six new Wilderness areas and two National Scenic Areas in Virginia’s Jefferson National Forest.
"This vote to pass the Virginia Ridge and Valley Act is an important step towards protecting what’s left of America’s wild legacy," said Sierra Club representative Myke Bybee.
"We’re running out of truly wild places where families can camp, hike, hunt and fish. There are only a handful of places left like this that haven’t been logged, mined, drilled, or built on. The majority of our public lands are open for development of some kind," Bybee said. "Wilderness designation is one of the best tools we have to protect what’s left of our forests and mountains. Congress is recognizing that more and more with legislation like this."
Wilderness designation offers the highest form of protection for public lands. As National Scenic Areas, Smyth County’s Seng Mountain and Bear Creek will be protected from development but will allow mountain biking and limited motorized access. Areas slated for wilderness designation include:
• Stone Mountain, a 3,270-acre stretch of forest adjacent to the North Fork of the Powell River.
• Raccoon Branch, 4223 acres of rugged, high-ridged country prized by hunters, anglers, hikers, and horseback riders.
• Brush Mountain, 4,794 acres of slope characterized by its remoteness and opportunities for solitude.
• Brush Mountain East, 3,769 acres of remote country with stunning creek and mountain views.
• Garden Mountain, 3,291 acres that extend along the rugged south face of Garden Mountain, bordered by the Appalachian Trail.
• Hunting Camp Creek, 8,470 acres of remote country crossed by the Appalachian Trail.
• Lynn Camp Creek, a 3,226-acre tract of forest that includes the northern slope of Brushy Mountain and tranquil Lynn Camp Creek, as well as parts of the Appalachian Trail.
You can permanently link to this entry at this location
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