kong
05-03-2012, 09:00 PM
We can protect caribou calves
Each spring, a herd of almost half a million caribou travels hundreds of miles north to western Arctic Alaska. These iconic northern creatures have another name you may know them by – reindeer. In their sheltered summer home, caribou moms calve and nurse their young. Cooling, coastal breezes keep ravenous insects away, and wolves, bears, and other predators rarely venture this far from the foothills. Without this safe haven, few of the newborn calves would survive. In this currently remote and undeveloped landscape, caribou movements through foothills and migratory bird populations in coastal wetlands represent our country's last, greatest wildlife spectacle. Right now, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is deciding how to manage 23 million acres of Arctic Alaskan lands that caribou calves need. They're giving the public a brief window of time to weigh in on their top proposals, including one that will protect caribou and other wildlife, such as migrating birds, while allowing for responsible oil development. This gives us an amazing opportunity to help them make the right choice. Protect caribou and other Arctic wildlife! Submit your comment now, and we'll deliver it to the Bureau of Land Management by June 1.
http://e.wcs.org/site/R?i=YQxIAwxgCRy8EuQer1iLAg
If we don't act now, companies will be allowed to develop in key regions – Utukok and Teshekpuk – where Alaska's largest herd of caribou give birth. Baby caribou will be displaced from their safe calving grounds – and into grave danger. That same development would attract more nest predators and disrupt the coastal wetlands international nursery of migratory birds. These 23 million acres of terrain in Arctic Alaska make up the largest public landscape in the United States – and one of our most precious wild places. In addition to hosting caribou that journey hundreds of miles each year to their traditional calving grounds, the region draws millions of migrating waterfowl and shorebirds to nest each spring. WCS has been working in western Arctic Alaska for more than a decade to study and protect this huge array of breathtaking wildlife. As the BLM considers several proposals for what to do with the land, one of their top choices is a smart, workable plan we are excited to stand behind as it balances areas for development with key protection from development in the most important areas for wildlife. In addition to our commitment to saving the region's precious wildlife, we have a concrete proposal for how to develop its natural resources, too. This is the best proposal for wildlife conservation in the western Arctic. It protects the coastal plain around Teshekpuk Lake – home of millions of migratory birds that come from all over the planet, and tens of thousands of caribou – and the Utukok Uplands, a landscape rich in caribou (the largest herd) and their natural predators – wolves, grizzlies, and wolverines. We have to speak out if we want to protect majestic herds of caribou and other extraordinary wildlife – but the public comment period will close quickly. Help the Bureau of Land Management make the right decision – and save caribou and other Arctic wildlife. Submit your comment by June 1! If we want caribou to survive, it's clear we need to step in to protect them. Thank you so much for speaking out on their behalf.
Sincerely,
John F. Calvelli
Executive Vice President, Public Affairs
Wildlife Conservation Society
Each spring, a herd of almost half a million caribou travels hundreds of miles north to western Arctic Alaska. These iconic northern creatures have another name you may know them by – reindeer. In their sheltered summer home, caribou moms calve and nurse their young. Cooling, coastal breezes keep ravenous insects away, and wolves, bears, and other predators rarely venture this far from the foothills. Without this safe haven, few of the newborn calves would survive. In this currently remote and undeveloped landscape, caribou movements through foothills and migratory bird populations in coastal wetlands represent our country's last, greatest wildlife spectacle. Right now, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is deciding how to manage 23 million acres of Arctic Alaskan lands that caribou calves need. They're giving the public a brief window of time to weigh in on their top proposals, including one that will protect caribou and other wildlife, such as migrating birds, while allowing for responsible oil development. This gives us an amazing opportunity to help them make the right choice. Protect caribou and other Arctic wildlife! Submit your comment now, and we'll deliver it to the Bureau of Land Management by June 1.
http://e.wcs.org/site/R?i=YQxIAwxgCRy8EuQer1iLAg
If we don't act now, companies will be allowed to develop in key regions – Utukok and Teshekpuk – where Alaska's largest herd of caribou give birth. Baby caribou will be displaced from their safe calving grounds – and into grave danger. That same development would attract more nest predators and disrupt the coastal wetlands international nursery of migratory birds. These 23 million acres of terrain in Arctic Alaska make up the largest public landscape in the United States – and one of our most precious wild places. In addition to hosting caribou that journey hundreds of miles each year to their traditional calving grounds, the region draws millions of migrating waterfowl and shorebirds to nest each spring. WCS has been working in western Arctic Alaska for more than a decade to study and protect this huge array of breathtaking wildlife. As the BLM considers several proposals for what to do with the land, one of their top choices is a smart, workable plan we are excited to stand behind as it balances areas for development with key protection from development in the most important areas for wildlife. In addition to our commitment to saving the region's precious wildlife, we have a concrete proposal for how to develop its natural resources, too. This is the best proposal for wildlife conservation in the western Arctic. It protects the coastal plain around Teshekpuk Lake – home of millions of migratory birds that come from all over the planet, and tens of thousands of caribou – and the Utukok Uplands, a landscape rich in caribou (the largest herd) and their natural predators – wolves, grizzlies, and wolverines. We have to speak out if we want to protect majestic herds of caribou and other extraordinary wildlife – but the public comment period will close quickly. Help the Bureau of Land Management make the right decision – and save caribou and other Arctic wildlife. Submit your comment by June 1! If we want caribou to survive, it's clear we need to step in to protect them. Thank you so much for speaking out on their behalf.
Sincerely,
John F. Calvelli
Executive Vice President, Public Affairs
Wildlife Conservation Society