Reposted from the blog of Rachel Tilseth, the founder of Wolves of Douglas County Wisconsin
Anti-environment interests in Congress are currently attacking the 40-yearold Endangered Species Act, which has been quite effective protection for wildlife. The House and the Senate have been attaching riders to the Interior Appropriations Bill that put species at greater risk than they currently are. This year, there have been dozens of underhanded legislative proposals introduced.
Their tactics go against what the American people want and play into the hands of shortsighted greed They are attaching controversial legislation that would never pass on its own. They are creating limitations on citizens’ ability to help enforce the act because 90 percent of the American people do not want these laws dismantled so large corporations can continue destroying our habitat for their individual profit.
Caeleigh MacNeil of Earthjustice notes that riders in the base text of the House bill attack federal protections for three imperiled species: the sage grouse; gray wolves in Wyoming and the Midwest; and the northern long-eared bat. More riders were added later to undermine ESA protections for the “Sonoran desert tortoise, the lesser prairie chicken, Preble’s meadow jumping mouse and six different types of mussels,” Maceil says. “Riders in the Senate bill target gray wolves in Wyoming and the Midwest, the lesser prairie chicken and the sage grouse.”
This attack to the Endangered Species Act come at a time when studies have shown that the rapid loss of biodiversity over the past few centuries indicate that a sixth mass extinction is already underway.
We must not allow reckless decisions and irresponsible partisan political moves with no thoughtful reasonable debate to become law. It is up to us to protect the Endangered Species Act and stop the exploitation of our resources by anti-environment lawmakers who are rolling back protections for all of us! Be the change.
Ruth A Remple
Longmont
Source: http://www.timescall.com/opinion/letterstotheeditor/ci_28529867/ruth-remple-we-must-protect-endangered-species-act
https://www.facebook.com/JohnEMarriottPhotography?ref=ts&fref=ts John E. Marriot Photography
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