I was looking at Earthjustice’ news magazine “In Brief” and ran across a chart that gave scores to Obama for undoing what George Bush did about major issues relative to the environment. The issues were greenhouse gases, roadless areas, the marbled murrelet (bird), mountaintop mining, wolves, hazardous waste, scientific consultation, snowmobiles, and California’s request to clamp down on vehicle emissions. Out of all of those issues scoring A’s to B+’s the lonely F went to WOLVES.
It is really apparent that wolves are being singled out, not worthy of attention from the Obama Administration. Look for yourself, Wolves really stick out on that long environmental “to do” list.
http://www.earthjustice.org/library/features/obamas-progress.html?qp_source=homepage.
Why is it wolves have taken a back seat in this administration? Oh that’s right—Ken Salazar, Secy. of Interior and member of the Cattlemen’s Association. It’s a bad deal for the wolf, a Native American icon that our Secy. of Interior once again does not understand fully the good impact wolves have on our environment. There are species of trees, shrubs, and grasses reappearing in Yellowstone that were formerly decimated by grazing herds of wolf prey. Wolves have literally changed the landscape of Yellowstone for the good.
As Frances Beinecke, President of the Natural Resources Defense Council, stated about our new Secretary of Interior:
As a Colorado rancher, landowner, and member of the Cattlemen’s Association, Secretary Salazar comes from the old school generation, where wolves are only seen as vicious animals that prey on livestock. They are not looked upon as an integral check-and-balance component of the natural world. We need a Secretary of Interior, who can make wildlife decisions based on science, not politics. That was a commitment made by President Obama, which does not translate into Ken Salazar’s premature and reckless de-listing of a species that will soon be targeted for a bloodbath.
I think it’s pretty obvious that the Cattlemen’s Association has influenced Salazar far more than science-based facts about wolves. He allowed them to be delisted from the Endangered Species Act prematurely, and therefore exposed them to slaughter again. What was the sense of spending all the time and energy to reintroduce the gray wolf back to the Yellowstone area if their increase was cut short? The science that reintroduced them also produced viable numbers the wolf population needed to reach to be considered stable. Wolf populations never neared these numbers. As a matter of fact wolf populations in the Greater Rockies was down 25% in 2008 due to distemper, mange, and infighting.
http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2009/01/yellowstone-national-parks-wolf-population-down-more-25-percent.
Bring back the science when it comes to America’s wildlife not the whims of special interest groups. If you care about what is happening to one of Native America’s greatest icons—the wolf, contact your reps and also support the reintroduced PAW (Protect America’s Wildlife) Act. The PAW Act will stop aerial killing of any animal for good. This Act needs to pass and soon as Alaska is planning yet another aerial killing season of both wolves and bears. Stop aerial hunting before it spreads to other states.
To sign a petition to support the PAW Act goto:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/477616584.
Tags: Secy. Salazar