The National Wildlife Refuge Association recently announced two key staffing updates in Operations and Development. These roles are integral in the current and future success of the organization.
"Red Wolves' Last Stronghold" Released
A Generation Of Seabirds Was Wiped Out By A Drone In Southern California. Scientists Fear Endangered Birds Could Be Next
A few miles from the border of Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge, which is home to several species of critically endangered birds, an unauthorized drone crashed into another part of the coastal marsh and provoked thousands of nesting Elegant terns to abandon more than 1,000 eggs, none of which are viable.
Naturalist Phillip Pollock, Celebrates National Award with St. Marks Friends Group
Pronghorn Appreciate Fencing Project At Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge
Oil Lease Sales Halted For Now In Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
The Biden Administration announced the suspension of oil drilling leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Trump Administration finalized these leases on January 19, 2021, the day before inauguration. The National Wildlife Refuge Association is thrilled with this decision: the Arctic Refuge is one of the largest tracts of untouched wilderness and most ecologically diverse areas in the United States and should not be destroyed in exchange for the pittance received from the January lease sale.
Proposed Baltimore-D.C. maglev bad for region’s natural resources
The proposed Super-Conducting Magnetic Levitation railway is a very bad idea for all of our natural resources. Instead of handing over the last remaining federally conserved land between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore to a private corporation, we should be focusing on restoring and building on our natural areas, which provide wildlife habitat, clean water and lands for hiking, hunting and wildlife watching.
Shaaron Netherton and Jose Witt Named Advocates of the Year by the National Wildlife Refuge Association
The National Wildlife Refuge Association announced that Shaaron Netherton, Jose Witt and the Friends of Nevada Wilderness are the 2021 National Wildlife Refuge System Advocates of the Year. They are being honored for their efforts to develop support for protecting the Desert National Wildlife Refuge (DNWR) in Nevada. Mr. Witt and Ms. Netherton worked tirelessly to engage and inspire a diversity of people and organizations to support the Refuge, which generated 32,000 public comments that were submitted to the Air Force, opposing the expansion of the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR), which encompasses over 2.9 million acres of federal land that has been withdrawn from public use and reserved for military use by the U.S. Air Force.
Wildlife Refuges Targeted for Huge Funding Increase by White House
The National Wildlife Refuge Association is thrilled to see a large increase for the National Wildlife Refuge System Operations and Maintenance Fund in the President’s FY2022 budget request. This increase to $584 million, $81 million more than current enacted funding, will go towards hiring additional staff to tackle invasive species, protect wildlife and habitat, and perform biological work and visitor services on wildlife refuges. This request is historic: $584 million is by far the largest proposed budget for Refuge System O&M ever.
30x30 For The National Wildlife Refuge System
The Biden Administration released their 30x30 campaign outline. We fully support efforts to fully fund National Wildlife Refuge System operations and maintenance, establish wildlife corridors, and expand protected lands. This plan seeks to do all this, plus increase outreach to private landowners, many of whom are all in on protecting their land for wildlife.