Fw: Obama Adopts Bush's Polar Bear Extinction Plan

[Guest guest]

Center for Biological DiversityCenter for Biological Diversity

Obama Adopts Bush's Polar Bear Extinction Plan

 

In a supremely disappointing -- and, for polar bears, life-threatening --

move last Friday, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced he would endorse

a Bush policy condemning the polar bear to extinction instead of rescinding

the rule as requested by Congress. Salazar ignored hundreds of thousands of

citizen petitions -- more than 94,000 of them from Center for Biological

Diversity supporters -- plus letters from scores of lawmakers, 44 law

professors, more than 130 conservation organizations, and more than 1,300

prominent scientists. The rule specifically exempts greenhouse gas emissions

from Endangered Species Act review even though global warming is driving the

polar bear extinct.

" Salazar's decision today is a gift to Big Oil, " declared the Center's

Biodiversity Program Director Noah Greenwald. We're already in court

fighting the bad polar bear rule and will soon press for an injunction to

bar its use.

 

Read more in the New York Times

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2 & c=qmS08%2Fftz21osisJ%2B

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and express your extreme displeasure to Salazar himself:

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2 & c=dwOO0MEW4nx%2F0p5WG9w

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Lawsuit Brewing Over Death of Last Known U.S. Jaguar

 

This Tuesday, the Center for Biological Diversity took the first step toward

preventing future jaguar tragedies in the United States with a 60-day notice

of intent to sue the Arizona Game and Fish Department for unlawfully causing

the death of Macho B, the last great cat known to roam north of the

U.S.-Mexico border. Macho B died in March after being captured, outfitted

with a radio collar, rereleased, and then recaptured by the agency -- which

unjustifiably euthanized him promptly after declaring he was suffering from

kidney failure. But it's still unclear what his underlying ailment was, and

more than one veterinarian has declared that capture contributed to his

death. Our suit addresses the fact that the Game and Fish Department didn't

have a permit to snare him in the first place -- in direct violation of the

Endangered Species Act.

 

" The death of Macho B was a tragedy that should never have happened, " said

Michael Robinson, conservation advocate for the Center. " We're taking action

to ensure that no more jaguars are captured like Macho B. " On the federal

level, we had substantial success this spring in our efforts to earn

protected habitat and a recovery plan for any jaguars remaining in the

United States -- and to enable those south of the border to reclaim their

historic U.S. turf.

 

 

Condor-shooter Investigation Continues; You Can Help

 

With the investigation in full swing to find the person (or people) who shot

two endangered California condors full of lead bullets in March, the Center

for Biological Diversity and Bruce Robertson, our private eye on the case,

have produced a wanted poster to help with apprehension efforts. Both

condors -- one of which was found shot with three lead bullets and the other

of which was full of 15 -- are still alive but may never return to the wild,

where every last California condor is crucial. In addition to hiring an

investigator, the Center announced in mid-April that the reward fund for

help in capturing the shooter or shooters has increased to $40,500, thanks

to generous pledges made by several groups (including the Center, the Wendy

P. McGaw Foundation, and the Humane Society).

Lead bullets are the leading cause of death for the endangered condor -- but

not from shooting. Many condors die from lead poisoning after scavenging

game shot with lead ammo. Just this week, condor No. 236 -- one of the first

six condors released to the wild in 2003 at Pinnacles National Monument --

died of lead poisoning.

 

If you live in central California, where both shot condors were found, email

and/or print out the wanted poster on our California condor Web page for all

in condor country to read.

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