{"id":10614,"date":"2014-09-10T15:48:02","date_gmt":"2014-09-10T19:48:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=10614"},"modified":"2014-09-10T15:48:02","modified_gmt":"2014-09-10T19:48:02","slug":"esa-policy-news-september-10-congress-aims-to-avoid-shutdown-esa-reaffirms-opposition-to-travel-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/2014\/09\/10\/esa-policy-news-september-10-congress-aims-to-avoid-shutdown-esa-reaffirms-opposition-to-travel-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"ESA Policy News September 10: Congress aims to avoid shutdown, ESA reaffirms opposition to travel bill"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here are some highlights from the latest ESA Policy News by Policy Analyst Terence Houston. Read the full Policy News\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em>\u00a0\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

APPROPRIATIONS: CONGRESS WILL TAKE UP RESOLUTION FUNDING GOVERNMENT THROUGH DECEMBER<\/strong><\/p>\n

As Congress reconvened Sept. 8, House and Senate appropriators were pressed for time to craft and approve a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government after Sept. 30, 2014 in order to prevent another federal government shutdown.<\/p>\n

The CR being considered this week will fund the government through December 11, 2014. The House is expected to take up the CR on Sept. 11. In stark contrast to last year, there seems to be little appetite professed by House and Senate leaders or influential tea party members to shutdown the government in light of the coming November Congressional midterm elections. While the US House of Representatives is expected to maintain Republican control, the US Senate election results and party control is uncertain. In addition to taking up the CR, each chamber will hold votes on issues that appeal to their respective voter base.<\/p>\n

The House is scheduled to work for two weeks through Sept. 19 and then will break to observe Rosh Hashanah. They may return for one week Sept. 29 if a CR is not enacted. The Senate is scheduled to work through Sept. 23. After the Nov. 2014 elections, the two chambers will reconvene for a lame duck session.<\/p>\n

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS: ESA REITERATES OPPOSITION TO TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS BILL<\/strong><\/p>\n

The week before Congress returned from the August district work period, the Ecological Society of America sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) expressing concern with S. 1347, the Conference Accountability Act. The bill would place additional restrictions on federal employee and contractor travel. Due to a number of factors, it is unlikely that the bill will be considered this year.<\/p>\n

View the full letter\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

HOUSE: COMMITTEE REVIEWS PROPOSED PROTECTION FOR NORTHERN LONG-EARED BAT<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Sept. 8, the House Natural Resources Committee convened for a field hearing to consider a proposal to list the northern long-eared bat under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the potential impacts the listing would have on the Pennsylvania economy.<\/p>\n

The committee members were skeptical on whether the ESA is an appropriate tool for addressing the bat species\u2019 decline. Several members argued that bat conservation efforts should focus on addressing White Nose Syndrome, which is attributed for its decline in recent years.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe likely primary cause for any documented decline of the bats is not caused by any human-related activity, but rather from a disease transmitted mostly from bats to other bats called \u2018White Nose Syndrome.\u2019 It seems to me that efforts should focus on that issue, rather than creating a federal endangered species solution in search of a problem,\u201d said Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA).<\/p>\n

However, Mollie Matteson, senior scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity, testified that the species\u2019 decline is attributable to numerous factors, which White Nose Syndrome has only exacerbated.<\/p>\n

\u201cScientists have evidence that the northern long-eared bat was in decline prior to the onset of White Nose Syndrome, possibly due to factors such as habitat destruction and fragmentation, environmental toxins, and climate change,\u201d stated Matteson. \u201cNow, White Nose Syndrome may be interacting with these other dangers to cause a downward spiral that may soon become irreversible.\u201d<\/p>\n

In her written testimony, Matteson also highlighted the important economic role bats play in curbing the proliferation of agricultural and forest pest insects, noting they provide \u201cbillions of dollars in crop protection services across the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n

For additional information on the hearing, click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

NOAA: NEW CORALS GARNER ENDANGERED SPECIES PROTECTIONS<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Sept. 3, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) listed twenty additional coral species as \u201cthreatened\u201d under the Endangered Species Act\u2014fifteen of the newly listed species occur in the Indo-Pacific and five in the Caribbean.<\/p>\n

For more information, click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

EPA: NEW GREAT LAKES INITIATIVE FUNDING DIRECTED TOWARDS ALGAL BLOOMS<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Sept. 3, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) will provide nearly $12 million to federal and state land agencies to address threats to public health and water resources posed by harmful algal blooms (HABs) in western Lake Erie.<\/p>\n

The funding will expand water treatment monitoring and forecasting in the region. It will also include incentives for area farmers to reduce their phosphorus runoff and improve measurement of phosphorus loads in Lake Erie tributaries.<\/p>\n

The Great Lakes Restoration Task Force, which oversees the GLRI, is chaired by EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.<\/p>\n

For additional information on the GLRI, click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FWS: FUNDING OF $35 MILLION FOR STATE ENDANGERED SPECIES CONSERVATION EFFORTS<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Sept. 9, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and US Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe announced nearly $35 million in grants to 20 states to enable collaborative efforts to conserve many of America\u2019s imperiled species, ranging from the red cockaded woodpecker in the Southeast to a variety of bat species in the Midwest to a colorful flower in the Rocky Mountains.<\/p>\n

The competitive grants allow states to work with private landowners, conservation groups and other government agencies to initiate conservation planning efforts and acquire and protect habitat that benefits threatened and endangered fish, wildlife and plants. The grant funding is provided through programs established to help advance creative partnerships for the recovery of imperiled species. This year, the fund will allocate approximately $7.4 million in grants through the Habitat Conservation Planning Assistance Grants Program; nearly $18 million through the Habitat Conservation Plan Land Acquisition Grants Program, and $9.5 million through the Recovery Land Acquisition Grants Program.<\/p>\n

For more information, follow this\u00a0link<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FWS: PARTNERSHIPS TO CONNECT CITY COMMUNITIES TO NATURE<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Aug. 28, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced new Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnerships that will help six city communities encourage participation in outdoor recreation and conservation efforts.<\/p>\n

The six national wildlife refuges participating in the Urban Refuge Partnerships include Hopper Mountain Refuge in Ventura, CA; Bayou Sauvage Refuge in New Orleans, LA; Rocky Mountain Arsenal Refuge in Denver, CO; John Heinz Refuge at Tinicum in Philadelphia, PA; Wallkill River Refuge in Sussex, NJ; and Santa Ana Refuge in Alamo, TX.<\/p>\n

For additional information on the six individual National Urban Refuge Partnerships, click this\u00a0link<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FWS: WOLVERINE DOES NOT WARRANT ENDANGERED SPECIES PROTECTION<\/strong><\/p>\n

In August, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced it withdrew its proposal to list the wolverine (Gulo gulo<\/em>) as \u201cthreatened\u201d under the Endangered Species Act. The Service initially proposed to list the wolverine based on climate change model forecasts showing overall loss of spring snow across the species\u2019 range. However, upon conducting a more thorough review and gathering additional information, the Service found that climate change models are unable to reliably predict snowfall amounts and snow-cover persistence in wolverine denning locations.<\/p>\n

\u201cClimate change is a reality, the consequences of which the Service deals with on a daily basis. While impacts to many species are clear and measurable, for others the consequences of a warming planet are less certain. This is particularly true in the Mountain West, where differences in elevation and topography make fine-scale prediction of climate impacts ambiguous,\u201d said FWS Director Dan Ashe in a press statement. \u201cIn this case, based on all the information available, we simply do not know enough about the ecology of the wolverine and when or how it will be affected by a changing climate to conclude at this time that it is likely to be in danger of extinction within the foreseeable future.\u201d<\/p>\n

The decision not to list the species has met with critique from environmental organizations who contend the agency is not following the recommendations of a majority of its scientists. FWS scientists had originally proposed listing the species in Feb. 2013.\u00a0 In July, the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) authored a letter expressing concern with the manner in which the agency has weighed scientific evidence in determining whether the wolverine qualifies for endangered species protection.<\/p>\n

View the CBD letter\u00a0here<\/a>. View the full\u00a0Federal Register<\/em>\u00a0notice<\/a>.<\/p>\n

CLIMATE CHANGE: AUDUBON REPORT HIGHLIGHTS BIRD VULNERABILITY<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Audubon Birds and Climate Report\u00a0is a comprehensive, first-of-its kind study that predicts how climate change could affect the ranges of 588 North American birds. The study models indicate that 314 species will lose more than 50 percent of their current climatic range by 2080.<\/p>\n

Audubon scientists used three\u00a0decades of citizen-scientist observations from the Audubon Christmas Bird Count and the North American Breeding Bird Survey to define the \u201cclimatic suitability\u201d for each bird species\u2014the range of temperatures, precipitation, and seasonal changes each species needs\u00a0to survive.<\/p>\n

For more information, follow this\u00a0link<\/a>.<\/p>\n

NSF: NEW ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES<\/strong><\/p>\n

James L. Olds has been selected by the National Science Foundation(NSF) to serve as the new assistant director for the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) beginning in October 2014.<\/p>\n

Olds is a George Mason University professor and director and chief academic unit officer at the Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study. He is also the Shelley Krasnow University Professor of Molecular Neuroscience. The international Decade of the Mind project was begun under his leadership at Krasnow, which helped shape President Obama\u2019s BRAIN Initiative.<\/p>\n

For more information click\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are some highlights from the latest ESA Policy News by Policy Analyst Terence Houston. Read the full Policy News\u00a0here.\u00a0 APPROPRIATIONS: CONGRESS WILL TAKE UP RESOLUTION FUNDING GOVERNMENT THROUGH DECEMBER As Congress reconvened Sept. 8, House and Senate appropriators were pressed for time to craft and approve a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government after Sept. 30, 2014 in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":10247,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,91],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ecology-in-policy","category-policy-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10614"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10614\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}