The federal government has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by environmental organizations including NRDC to force the Department of Interior to designate critical habitat for ursus maritimus [AP photo], the great white bear of the north. Species for which critical habitat has been designated have been found to be more than twice as likely to recover, and less than half as likely to decline, than those without. The agreement filed yesterday in federal court sets a deadline for the Secretary of the Interior to make the designation and issue guidelines for non-lethal actions concerning bears that pose a threat to humans under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. More and more bears are stranded ashore as their sea ice habitat rapidly melts due to global warming. As a result there is an increase in human-bear interactions. Often such interactions result in the death of the bear. The partial settlement does not cover the issue of whether the Secretary erred in designating the bear as "threatened" rather than "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act, depriving the polar bear of additional protection from human interference. The state of Alaska, under the administration of Sarah Palin, and industry groups have filed suit in Washington, DC seeking to overturn protection for polar bears.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Polar Bears Gain Critical Habitat
The federal government has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by environmental organizations including NRDC to force the Department of Interior to designate critical habitat for ursus maritimus [AP photo], the great white bear of the north. Species for which critical habitat has been designated have been found to be more than twice as likely to recover, and less than half as likely to decline, than those without. The agreement filed yesterday in federal court sets a deadline for the Secretary of the Interior to make the designation and issue guidelines for non-lethal actions concerning bears that pose a threat to humans under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. More and more bears are stranded ashore as their sea ice habitat rapidly melts due to global warming. As a result there is an increase in human-bear interactions. Often such interactions result in the death of the bear. The partial settlement does not cover the issue of whether the Secretary erred in designating the bear as "threatened" rather than "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act, depriving the polar bear of additional protection from human interference. The state of Alaska, under the administration of Sarah Palin, and industry groups have filed suit in Washington, DC seeking to overturn protection for polar bears.