Trump administration policy change has had dire consequences for migratory birds - Entrepreneur Generations

Dozens of bird-preservation efforts have been abandoned since a 2017 Trump administration change to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The administration called the change a clarification of the law, but the action has had dire consequences for many birds.

"Across the country birds have been killed and nests destroyed by oil spills, construction crews and chemical contamination, all with no response from the federal government, according to emails, memos and other documents," Lisa Friedman reports for The New York Times. "Not only has the administration stopped investigating most bird deaths, the documents show, it has discouraged local governments and businesses from taking precautionary measures to protect birds."

Essentially, the update ends legal consequences for businesses or other entities that kill birds, as long as the deaths were accidental. "In nearly two dozen incidents across 15 states, internal conversations among Fish and Wildlife Service officers indicate that, short of going out to shoot birds, activities in which birds die no longer merit action," Friedman reports. "In some cases the Trump administration has even discouraged local governments and businesses from taking relatively simple steps to protect birds, like reporting fatalities when they are found."

The Western Energy Alliance, an oil and gas trade association, put the change to the migratory bird law at the top of a wish list sent to Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. WEA president Kathleen Sgamma said she felt the Obama administration had "weaponized" the law to hurt the industry, Friedman reports. Six months later after WEA sent the memo, the Trump administration announced the change to the migratory bird law.

"Gavin Shire, a spokesman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, the agency responsible for protecting migratory birds, said in a statement that other federal laws like the Endangered Species Act remain on the books. The Trump administration, he said, 'will continue to work cooperatively with our industry partners to minimize impacts on migratory birds,'" Friedman reports. Some state and local governments and companies are still acting voluntarily to protect birds. 

"Habitat loss and pesticide exposure already have brought on widespread bird-species declines. The number of adult breeding birds in the United States and Canada has plummeted by 2.9 billion since 1970," Friedman reports.

"Migratory birds are important ecological and economic drivers," Brittany Patterson reports for Ohio Valley ReSource. "Each year, birders spend an estimated $41 billion on trips and equipment. Birds are the proverbial 'canary in the coal mine,' and also literal ones. As ecological indicator species they inform us when environmental conditions have changed."

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/36lB2Cm Trump administration policy change has had dire consequences for migratory birds - Entrepreneur Generations

Posted by Entrepreneur Generations

Tweet