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For Immediate Release
Climate change reports welcomed by Defenders of Wildlife
But 11th hour Bush administration action called too little, too late
WASHINGTON – Today, Secretary Dirk Kempthorne of the U.S. Department of the Interior released draft reports from the Department’s Climate Change Task Force. The following is a statement by Rodger Schlickeisen, president of Defenders of Wildlife.
“Today’s release of three reports compiled by the Interior Department’s Climate Change Task Force is an overdue acknowledgement by the departing Bush administration that global warming’s impact should be of concern to federal land and wildlife managers. And while the reports undoubtedly contain some good ideas, thanks to the dedicated work of career professionals at the Interior Department, it is, quite simply, too little too late from this failed administration.
“In the face of the overwhelming threat posed by global warming to wildlife, habitat, and the ecosystems on which human life depends, Interior Secretary Kempthorne’s announcement today that he is posting the reports on the Department’s website, creating a new position of Climate Change Coordinator, and a new departmental Climate Change Advisory Council are almost laughably inadequate. With the end of the Bush administration in sight, today’s announcement seems calculated once again to give the appearance of action when, in reality, no action to address the impacts of global warming is taking place.
“To the extent there are some good ideas in the reports, the incoming Obama administration can use them. But more importantly, the Obama administration can chart a new course to meaningfully address the causes and impacts of global warming. One important step is to support enactment of the measures contained in the Global Warming Wildlife Survival Act. This legislation requires the development and implementation of a national strategy to assist wildlife adaptation to global warming, establish a national science center on global warming and wildlife, and, most importantly, dedicate significant funding from any cap and trade system to measures to assist wildlife adaptation to global warming.
“The impact of global warming on our living natural resources will be massive and represents an enormous threat to the incredible benefits that Americans derive from nature, from aesthetic and recreational enjoyment, to free and irreplaceable services like cleaning and regulating our air and water, decomposing waste and fertilizing our soils. Meeting this challenge requires leadership that has been sadly lacking in the Bush administration. Inauguration Day, January 20, 2009 cannot get here quickly enough.”
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Defenders of Wildlife is dedicated to the protection of all native animals and plants in their natural communities. With more than 1 million members and activists, Defenders of Wildlife is a leading advocate for innovative solutions to safeguard our wildlife heritage for generations to come. For more information, visit www.defenders.org.
