National Audubon Society

ADVISORY | November 2017

Tundra Swan.

Tundra Swans are among the birds that return to the Arctic Refuge year after year to nest and raise their young.

Senate Takes Next Step Toward Drilling in the Arctic Refuge

The U.S. Senate is continuing to advance the unprecedented threat to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing last week on opening the Arctic Refuge to drilling—a significant step toward drilling proponents’ goal to include it in the tax bill. A committee vote is expected next week.Read more and take action.

Photograph of an American Kestrel landing on a branch.

Migratory Bird Treaty Act Under Attack in the U.S. House

Earlier this week, in a last-minute move with little debate, Representative Liz Cheney snuck an amendment into a larger energy bill that would gut the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This provision, added during a House committee vote, would turn back the clock decades in protecting birds and give industries a free pass to kill birds with impunity.

Read more and take action.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act protects more than 1,000 species of birds, including American Kestrels.

Photograph of a Tricololored Blackbird on a reed.

Good News! New Bill Strengthens Conservation on Agricultural Lands

A new bill— the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Improvement Act—will expand the reach and effectiveness of conservation projects. The RCPP was created in the 2014 Farm Bill and has been critical to improving habitat for birds on private lands across all the landscapes on which Audubon works.

Several Audubon conservation efforts involve regional conservation partnerships, such as Audubon California's work with dairy farmers to protect Tricolored Blackbirds.

A photograph of a Golden-winged Warbler perched on a branch.

Speaking Up to Protect America's Natural Heritage

Unless new legislation is passed, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, established in 1964 to protect America’s natural areas and water resources, will expire in less than a year. In early October, Audubon members from Washington and North Carolina traveled to Washington, DC to advocate for permanent reauthorization and increased funding for LWCF.

Read more and take action.

LWCF has helped protect forest habitat for Golden-winged Warblers in North Carolina.

News from the Flyways

10-year anniversary of California’s San Francisco Bay oil spill is a cautionary tale amid push for more oil drilling.

Audubon Florida sounds the alarm on high water levels in Lake Okeechobee.

North Carolina's Governor and First Lady unveil a bird-friendly garden at the executive mansion.

South Carolina GOP executive committee member calls on Congress to save the Arctic Refuge from oil drilling.

Impact Updates

Photograph of a Black Guillemot "running" across water.

The push to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling threatens more than its vital habitat, which is home to more than 200 species of birds. In addition, extracting and burning more oil and gas would create more carbon pollution, the main driver of climate change. The average temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the rest of the world, so the impacts of climate change are especially serious in this region. These impacts include melting sea ice that affects birds that roost, feed, or nest along the ice, such as the Black Guillemot and Ivory Gull. The effects also include rising sea levels that are forcing people in Alaska to rebuild or leave their homes. Climate change is also having an impact on traditional subsistence, due to the changing patterns of species that indigenous Alaskan communities rely on for food. So not only would Arctic Refuge drilling infrastructure impact the caribou that the Gwich’in people rely on for subsistence, climate change could contribute to further adverse impacts on food security. Read more.

Black Guillemots depend on sea ice for easy access to fish for their young.

Photograph of a Wood Stork wading at sunset.

Your Actions at Work

Sometimes it takes a while before we can report on the outcome of your actions. Last year at this time, the future of the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge was in doubt. The refuge provides critical habitat to 250 species of birds, including the largest wading bird colony in the Everglades with more than 7,000 active nests. 19,230 Auduboners like you mobilized and advocated for cooperation between state and federal agencies to keep the refuge open. We are so pleased to report the agencies have agreed to do just that! The agencies are reaffirming their commitment to working together and addressing the challenge presented by invasive exotic plants while keeping the area a National Wildlife Refuge. Thank you for being a part of this important win for America’s Everglades! Read more.

Threatened Wood Storks depend on the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge for nesting habitat.

Photos from top: Mark Boyd/Audubon Photography Awards; Sylvia Hunt/Audubon Photography Awards; Jameson Scott; Michael Stubblefield/Audubon Photography Awards; Michael Stubblefield/Audubon Photography Awards (left); Frederick Wasmer/Audubon Photography Awards (right)

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