Current Press Releases
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CONTACT: Craig Noble, NRDC Action Fund, cnoble@nrdc.org, 415/875-6100 (office) or 415/601-8235 (mobile)
Josh Mogerman, NRDC Action Fund, 312/780-7424 (office) or 773/531-5359 (mobile)
Conservation Groups Challenge Wolf Delisting in Federal Court
Wolf Recovery Area Turns Into "Killing Field," Says NRDC Action Fund
NOTE TO JOURNALISTS – Broadcast quality b-roll of wolves in the wild in Yellowstone National Park and still photographs of a dead wolf that was recently poached in Idaho are available for preview and download on NRDC's new digital newsroom.
LIVINGSTON, MT (April 28, 2008) – Citing the recent rash of wolf killings in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, conservation groups asked a federal court today to reinstate Endangered Species Act protections, while considering arguments that delisting the wolf was unlawful. The request for a court order to stop the killing was filed with a lawsuit challenging the federal government's wolf delisting decision.
At least 28 wolves have been killed in the three states since the delisting took effect on March 28. The death toll could be even higher since kills are not required to be reported immediately, and 'shoot and bury' tactics mean that some kills might not be reported at all.
"Until now the reintroduction of gray wolves to the Northern Rockies was one of our greatest endangered species success stories," said Louisa Willcox, NRDC Action Fund Wildlife Campaign Director. "Now the region has become a killing field for wolves, just as we predicted."
"Dozens of wolves have been killed already, and more are certain to die under state laws that in many cases allow unregulated wolf killing anywhere, anytime, for any reason," Willcox said.
In their request for a preliminary injunction reinstating Endangered Species Act protections, the Action Fund’s partner organization, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and 11 other groups argued that "the killing of wolves that have been removed unlawfully from the endangered species list is sufficient to demonstrate irreparable harm."
"The killing must stop while the court considers the government's illegal decision to revoke protections in the first place," Willcox said. "The gray wolf simply hasn't recovered yet. Every animal that falls victim to bait or bullet increases the odds that wolves will slide back toward extinction."
Some of the first wolves to be killed since the delisting took effect include:
• Wolf 253M – This eight-year-old celebrity wolf's fans called him "Hoppy" because of his limp (caused by an injury from a fight with another wolf pack). He was shot the day after delisting on an elk feeding ground in Wyoming. This black wolf was one of the most recognizable members of Yellowstone's famous Druid Peak pack. People snapped his photograph and shot video as he and his pack mates played, hunted and snoozed. Later, he became the first wolf to step foot into Utah in over 75 years and established his own pack in Grand Teton National Park.
• The Ashton wolves – These two males were killed on April 1 near Ashton, Idaho. The first was shot within view of the shooter's home near some horses. The second was pursued by the landowner for over a mile on snowmobile. Authorities declined to press charges against the shooter due to "reasonable doubt" as to whether the wolves were "molesting" livestock.
• Wolf B160 – This collared wolf was found shot on April 3 near Clayton, Idaho. His body was still warm when a woman found him about 70 yards from Highway 75. He had been shot through the femur and stomach. (Photos of Wolf B160's carcass are available on NRDC's digital newsroom).
In their challenge to wolf delisting, the groups alleged multiple violations of the Endangered Species Act. They said the death toll confirms arguments that the delisting decision threatens wolf survival. They also said the delisting decision was based on outdated science.
"We understand wolf biology, behavior and genetics much better than when the original wolf recovery goal was developed more than 20 years ago," said Dr. Sylvia Fallon, an NRDC Action Fund scientist. "You and your doctor wouldn't make important health decisions based on outdated research, yet that's exactly what the federal government has done with wolves."
The lawsuit says scientists have determined wolf populations are still too fragmented and a minimum population of 2,000 to 5,000 animals is needed to ensure enough genetic diversity for the animals' long-term survival. At the time of delisting there were about 1,500 wolves in the region. All but 300 could be allowed to be killed under the government's current minimum recovery standard.
The Action Fund's partner group, NRDC, filed a petition in February requesting that the Fish and Wildlife Service establish legitimate targets for recovery of wolves throughout the lower 48 states. In its petition, NRDC demonstrates that the service failed to recover wolves on much of the available public lands where wolves formerly lived, and ignored decades of scientific analysis. Without explanation or any scientific basis, the service set widely different recovery goals in the Midwest, Northern Rockies and Southwest regions.
The reintroduction of wolves by the federal government 12 years ago has been widely hailed as a major success story. It has measurably improved the natural balance in the Northern Rockies and benefited bird, antelope and elk populations, according to the Action Fund. Many thousands of visitors flock to Yellowstone National Park each year to see and hear wolves in the wild, contributing at least $35 million to the local economy each year, the group said.
Thousands of gray wolves roamed the Rocky Mountains before being slaughtered and eliminated from 95 percent of the lower 48 states by the 1930s. The gray wolf was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1973. Reintroduction efforts placed 66 wolves in Yellowstone National Park and part of Idaho in 1995-96.
The lawsuit was filed by Earthjustice on behalf of NRDC, Defenders of Wildlife, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, The Humane Society of the United States, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Friends of the Clearwater, Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Oregon Wild, Cascadia Wildlands Project, Western Watersheds Project, and Wildlands Project.
As part of its "Call Off the Guns" campaign, the NRDC Action Fund has generated more than 150,000 comments and emails to the Bush administration, urging it to maintain strong protections for the wolves under the Endangered Species Act. The campaign also ran national TV and print ads in an effort to mobilize the public against the government's wolf killing plan.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Craig Noble, NRDC Action Fund, cnoble@nrdc.org, 415/875-6100 (office) or 415/601-8235 (mobile)
Bush Decision Jeopardizes Wolves, Thwarts Will of Americans
Legal action means fight not over to protect iconic animal, says NRDC Action Fund
New York (February 21, 2008) – The Bush administration has turned a deaf ear to sound science and the will of millions of Americans once again with a misguided decision announced today to revoke endangered species protection for gray wolves in the Northern Rockies, according to the NRDC Action Fund.
"Hunting, trapping, poisoning, even killing wolf pups in their dens could all be allowed again if the wolf killing machine is put back into action," said Louisa Willcox of the NRDC Action Fund. "Wolf extermination was the name of the game before the Endangered Species Act, and this delisting plan could put the species right back to the brink of extinction."
NRDC Action Fund supporters sent more than 150,000 comments and emails to the Bush administration, urging it to maintain strong protections for the wolves under the Endangered Species Act. But today's action shows that the administration is unresponsive to the will of Americans and the expertise of independent scientists.
The Action Fund's partner organization, the Natural Resources Defense Council, is expected to file a lawsuit challenging the delisting decision on the grounds that it is too soon to remove protections because the wolves have not fully recovered.
About 1,500 wolves currently live in the Northern Rockies. All but 300 could be the killed, and the government would still consider them officially recovered. Independent scientists say there should be at least 2,500 to 5,000 wolves to ensure the species' long term health and survival.
Conservationists say delisting wolves and allowing their slaughter will reverse more than a decade of wolf recovery progress, which began in 1995 when the federal government reintroduced wolves in the wild in central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. Since then, the wolves have thrived, grown in numbers and spread outside the park, restoring a natural balance that had been altered after their extermination during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Craig Noble, NRDC Action Fund, cnoble@nrdc.org, 415/875-6100 (office) or 415/601-8235 (mobile)
NRDC Action Fund Takes Aim at Government Plan to Kill Yellowstone Wolves
New York Times Ad Urges Americans to Tell Congress to Stop Wolf Killing Plan
New York (February 1, 2008) – Americans should urge their representatives in Congress to stop a Bush administration plan to kill hundreds of threatened wolves, according to a full page advertisement in today’s New York Times. The ad by NRDC Action Fund says the Bush administration rule allows the federal government and the states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming to hunt, trap and gun down entire packs of wolves in the Northern Rockies.
The ad depicts a lone gray wolf and asks Americans whether their tax dollars should be used “to shoot animals on the endangered species list.” Readers are directed to the campaign web site (www.CallOffTheGuns.org) where they may view the ad and take action. Visitors can use the web site to submit letters to their representatives, urging them to oppose the rule.
The new “10(j)” rule widens a loophole in the Endangered Species Act that permits the killing of hundreds of wolves even though the animals are considered at risk of extinction. The U.S Fish and Wildlife Service published the rule in the Federal Register on January 28, allowing states to kill wolves that they believe are adversely affecting elk. But elk numbers in the region are at an all-time high. Despite this fact, the states of Wyoming and Idaho have made it clear that they intend to manage wolves at the minimum allowable level, leaving alive as few as 600 of the 1,500 wolves now living in the region. According to the rule, aerial gunning and shooting from the ground will be used to kill wolves.
The rule precedes an expected decision to remove wolves from the endangered species list next month. After that happens, wolf numbers could be reduced to as few as 300.
Conservationists say the wolf killing plan will reverse more than a decade of wolf recovery progress, which began in 1995 when the federal government reintroduced wolves in the wild in central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. Since then, the wolves have thrived, grown in numbers and spread outside the park, restoring a natural balance that had been altered after their extermination during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
“It makes common sense not to kill an animal that we’ve worked so hard to restore,” said Louisa Willcox of the NRDC Action Fund. “But instead the Bush administration wants to treat wolves like vermin instead of an endangered species. It’s trying to reverse one of the most successful wildlife recovery programs in U.S. history.”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Rob Perks, NRDC Action Fund, rperks@nrdc.org, 202/289-6868
Presidential Candidates Agree to Appear at Forum on Global Warming and America's Energy Future
Clinton and Edwards Commit to Appear at Forum Sponsored by Grist in Los Angeles on November 17
Washington, DC (November 7, 2007) – For the first time in history, candidates for President have committed to appear at a forum focused on the issues of global warming and America’s energy future.
On November 17, Senators Hillary Clinton and John Edwards are confirmed to attend the forum sponsored by Grist. The candidates will present their plans to address global warming and energy issues in a series of interviews with journalists and experts in the field. The Grist forum will be presented in partnership with the NRDC Action Fund, the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, California League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, Center for American Progress Action Fund, and the Presidential Forum on Renewable Energy. All candidates from both the Democratic and Republican parties have been invited.
The forum will be held at the Wadsworth Theatre in West Los Angeles on Saturday, November 17. The estimated start time will be 1:30pm PST.
The 2008 Presidential campaign provides the American people with an important opportunity to choose the direction for our Nation for the next four years and beyond. Our nation's energy policy has implications that stretch well beyond the price of gasoline. The American people are eager to hear the candidates address this multifaceted issue in a substantive and meaningful way. Addressing global warming, renewable energy and the urgent steps that need to be taken by the next President to reduce significantly the U.S. contribution to greenhouse gases and our consumption of oil is of utmost importance. Unfortunately, so little has been discussed about these topics in the presidential forums to date.
In poll after poll, the American people have indicated that global warming and America's energy future rank among the top-tier issues they want to see addressed by the next President. And they are looking for a substantive discussion of these issues in this campaign. This forum will ensure these issues are discussed at length.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Craig Noble, NRDC Action Fund, 415/875-6100 (office) or 415/601-8235 (mobile)
Time Running Out to Stop Government Plan to Kill Yellowstone Wolves
NRDC Action Fund Launches National TV Advertising Campaign
NEW YORK (September 27, 2007) – The NRDC Action Fund will begin airing a national TV ad next week to mobilize the public against a government plan to kill endangered wolves in the Northern Rockies.
The 30-second ad shows wolf pups frolicking in a meadow while an unseen aircraft ominously approaches. The sound of rotor blades signals the aircraft getting closer and closer as the pups begin to notice that something is wrong. Gunshots ring out, and the video cuts to black, followed by onscreen text, “Censored for your protection. Then again, you’re not the one who needs protecting.”
Another gunshot echoes, and the ad cuts to video of a lone mother wolf. An off-screen announcer says, “If the Bush administration gets its way, nearly 600 wolves could be gunned down in the Northern Rockies starting as early as this winter. You can help stop the massacre.”
Viewers are then directed to a website (www.CallOffTheGuns.org) where anyone can view the ad and take action. Website visitors will be urged to submit a citizen comment to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, opposing its plan to allow the killing of wolves in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem – including wolves that wander outside Yellowstone National Park – and Central Idaho’s wild country. The government will close its public comment period on October 11.
The U.S. plan would allow the states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming to start killing wolves even though they are protected under the Endangered Species Act. Soon after, the government wants to remove the wolves’ endangered species protection altogether. But in the interim, Idaho and Wyoming officials have stated their intentions to immediately kill nearly 600 wolves. Wyoming’s post-delisting plan classifies wolves as “predatory animals” in three-fourths of the state, allowing them to be killed by anyone, anywhere, anytime. Wyoming and Idaho plan to use aerial gunning, and all three states will allow public hunting and trapping of wolves.
Conservationists say the wolf killing plan will reverse more than a decade of wolf recovery progress, which began in 1995 when the federal government reintroduced wolves in the wild in central Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. Since then, the wolves have thrived, grown in numbers and spread outside the park, restoring a natural balance that had been altered after their extermination during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
“It makes common sense not to kill an animal that we’ve worked so hard to restore,” said Louisa Willcox of the NRDC Action Fund. “But instead the Bush administration wants to treat wolves like vermin instead of an endangered species. It’s trying to reverse one of the most successful wildlife recovery programs in U.S. history.”
The government can kill wolves because of a special exception to the Endangered Species Act known as the “10(j) rule.” Reintroduced species like the Northern Rocky Mountain gray wolf are managed differently than other endangered species. They are considered “experimental populations,” and government agencies are allowed more leeway in managing them, including using lethal control.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it needs to make killing wolves easier to protect big game from wolf predation. However, current rules already allow wolves to be killed if the states can show that they are the “primary” cause of elk or deer depletion. The new plan loosens that rule, allowing wolves to be killed anywhere big game herds are considered below desired management levels, even though studies show that elk populations are at all time highs and damaging habitat by overgrazing in many areas. There are about 300,000 elk in the region and only about 1,300 wolves.
Under the new rule, the killing could start as soon as this winter. The government’s plan to revoke endangered species protection altogether is expected next year.
Thousands of gray wolves once roamed the Rocky Mountains before being slaughtered and eliminated in most of the West by the 1930s. The gray wolf was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act in 1973. Reintroduction efforts placed 66 wolves in Yellowstone National Park and part of Idaho in 1995-96. About 1,300 wolves now live in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Craig Noble, NRDC Action Fund, 415/875-6100 (office) or 415/601-8235 (mobile)
Whales Draw Strong Public Support for Endangered Species Listing
More than 100,000 Americans Urge Feds to Protect Belugas Against Oil and Gas Development
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (August 3, 2007) – In just two months, more than 100,000 Americans have urged federal officials to list the Cook Inlet beluga whale as an endangered species under the federal Endangered Species Act. Only 300 of the genetically-unique white whales survive in Alaska’s Cook Inlet, where they face mounting threats from oil and gas development, global warming, and pollution. The large volume of comments was the result of an Internet-driven campaign by the NRDC Action Fund, a conservation group affiliated with the Natural Resources Defense Council that mobilizes Americans to protect the environment.
The whales’ population has plummeted by 77 percent since the early 1980s, when about 1,300 of them thrived in the 180-mile-long estuary southwest of Anchorage, Alaska. The National Marine Fisheries Service proposed protecting them from extinction in April after lengthy urging by a coalition of local and national conservation organizations.
“Cook Inlet beluga whales are found nowhere else,” said Andrew Wetzler, director of the Endangered Species Project at the NRDC Action Fund. “Yet they live right in the middle of one of our nation’s busiest zones for oil and gas development. If we don’t take immediate steps to protect them, then they will likely go extinct.”
Today marks the end of the required 60-day public comment period for the endangered species listing petition. The government has until April 2008 to decide whether to go forward with the plan.
If the whale is listed, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service must designate critical habitat and prepare a beluga whale recovery plan. In addition, all federal agencies would be prohibited from taking any action – including issuing permits – that would be likely to jeopardize the whale’s continued existence or result in adverse changes to its designated critical habitat.
Among the many threats facing Cook Inlet belugas are expanded oil and gas production, ocean noise pollution, and the local sewage treatment plant. The exploration for oil and gas, as well as increased ship traffic and other development in the inlet, generates intense sounds that can disturb, injure and even kill whales. Cook Inlet belugas are also threatened by a waiver for Anchorage’s sewage treatment plant, issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, which allows the plant to discharge millions of gallons of partially-treated sewage into the inlet ever day. Finally, the specter of global warming threatens the whales, because it is expected to drastically change the Cook Inlet’s natural systems in the coming decades.
The NRDC Action Fund is Mobilizing America for Our Environment. We are organized under Section 501(c)(4) of the tax code, which permits us to devote 100 percent of our resources to lobbying Congress and mobilizing the public. The NRDC Action Fund is an affiliate of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
