Oct 31, 2020, 22:35 pm
Reported August 18.
The Trump administration on Tuesday opened up or expanded hunting and fishing at nearly 150 national wildlife refuges and fish hatcheries, expanding hunters' ability to kill big game, migratory birds and other animals.
The 147 newly opened or expanded hunting sites are scattered across nearly every state and include parts of the Everglades in Florida, the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Texas and the Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge in Kansas.
While officials touted the efforts as creating greater access for sportsmen, environmentalists expressed concerns that the weakened protections could harm ecosystems and jeopardize protected species by allowing hunters to go after more predators.
A total of 430 sites in the National Wildlife Refuge System will be open to hunting and 360 will be open to fishing following the move, with 21 national fish hatcheries also open for hunting and sport fishing.
The Center for Biological Diversity also warned that other types of animals could be accidentally shot or harmed by lead ammunition and tackle that can be toxic for birds.
The administration has made several moves previously to advance hunting, including recently easing rules for killing Alaskan bear cubs and wolf pups.
It separately moved to open up a wildlife refuge in Alaska for oil and gas drilling, sparking controversy.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-enviro...nearly-150
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Update:
Reported October 27.
Trump administration faces lawsuit over hunting expansion at nearly 150 wildlife refuges
The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) faces a forthcoming lawsuit over its decision to open up or expand hunting at 147 national wildlife refuges and fish hatcheries.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice of intent to sue the agency Tuesday, arguing that the government didn’t fully analyze the effects of the decision on endangered species including birds and jaguars.
The Trump administration has taken other steps to increase hunting access and was recently sued over its decision to ease restrictions on hunting bear cubs and wolf pups at national preserves in Alaska.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-enviro...-at-nearly
The Trump administration on Tuesday opened up or expanded hunting and fishing at nearly 150 national wildlife refuges and fish hatcheries, expanding hunters' ability to kill big game, migratory birds and other animals.
The 147 newly opened or expanded hunting sites are scattered across nearly every state and include parts of the Everglades in Florida, the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Texas and the Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge in Kansas.
Quote:“The Trump Administration has now made an additional 2.3 million acres accessible to new hunting and fishing opportunities,” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said in a statement.
While officials touted the efforts as creating greater access for sportsmen, environmentalists expressed concerns that the weakened protections could harm ecosystems and jeopardize protected species by allowing hunters to go after more predators.
Quote:“Mountain lions, bears and other top predators are so important to ecosystems,” Collette Adkins, the Center for Biological Diversity’s carnivore conservation director, said in a statement.
“These beautiful and important animals will be in the crosshairs in many American national refuges.”
A total of 430 sites in the National Wildlife Refuge System will be open to hunting and 360 will be open to fishing following the move, with 21 national fish hatcheries also open for hunting and sport fishing.
The Center for Biological Diversity also warned that other types of animals could be accidentally shot or harmed by lead ammunition and tackle that can be toxic for birds.
Quote:“This rule favors trophy hunters at the expense of the rest of us who love and appreciate bears, bobcats and other animals,” Adkins said. “It’s outrageous, and we’re going to do everything we can to stop it.”
The administration has made several moves previously to advance hunting, including recently easing rules for killing Alaskan bear cubs and wolf pups.
It separately moved to open up a wildlife refuge in Alaska for oil and gas drilling, sparking controversy.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-enviro...nearly-150
----------------------------------------------------
Update:
Reported October 27.
Trump administration faces lawsuit over hunting expansion at nearly 150 wildlife refuges
The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) faces a forthcoming lawsuit over its decision to open up or expand hunting at 147 national wildlife refuges and fish hatcheries.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice of intent to sue the agency Tuesday, arguing that the government didn’t fully analyze the effects of the decision on endangered species including birds and jaguars.
Quote:“We’re going to court to ensure that our nation’s wildlife refuges can actually provide refuges for wildlife,” said Collette Adkins, the center’s carnivore conservation director, in a statement.
“We’ve never before seen such a massive expansion of bad hunting practices on these public lands. There’s no sound reason for this, and the Fish and Wildlife Service has either ignored or downplayed the many risks that hunting poses to endangered wildlife,” Adkins added.
The Trump administration has taken other steps to increase hunting access and was recently sued over its decision to ease restrictions on hunting bear cubs and wolf pups at national preserves in Alaska.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-enviro...-at-nearly