[MCN] U.S. House passes terrible "Sportsmen's" Bill undermining Wilderness, Public Lands & Wildlife

[Matthew Koehler]

Hello: More bad news for America's public lands, Wilderness and wildlife –
especially wolves.

Yesterday, the U.S. House – largely on a partisan vote – passed the
so-called "Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement (SHARE) Act,"
which actually threatens America’s public lands, Wilderness and wildlife
heritage while weakening our nation’s bedrock environmental laws.

Among other terrible provisions, the “SHARE” Act effectively repeals the
Wilderness Act by allowing road construction, motor vehicles and permanent
structures in our nation’s protected Wilderness areas. Even worse, the bill
would exempt all such projects in Wilderness from environmental review!

The fight now goes to the U.S. Senate where Sen Daines is all but assured
to vote for the bill, while Senator Tester's position is unclear,
especially because he's supported some troubling aspects of various
"Sportsmen's" bills over the past few years.

Please share your opinion with Senator Daines and Senator Tester.  Below is
more information from the Center for Biological Diversity.

Thanks.


For Immediate Release, February 26, 2016

Contact: Brett Hartl, (202) 817-8121, Bhartl at biologicaldiversity.org

U.S. House of Representatives Approves Bill Slashing Wildlife Protections

* 'Sportsmen’s Heritage Act' Threatens Wolves, Elephants, Polar Bears,
Birds, People*

WASHINGTON— In a partisan vote, the U.S. House of Representatives today
passed the so-called “Sportsmen’s Heritage and Recreational Enhancement
Act” that would end federal protection for gray wolves in Wyoming and the
western Great Lakes. The bill includes a grab bag of additional
special-interest provisions that primarily benefit the livestock industry,
National Rifle Association and those who peddle elephant ivory. More than
60 conservation organizations signed an open letter
<http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/public_lands/pdfs/Letter_from_60_Plus_Groups_Opposing_SHARE_Act.pdf>
opposing
the Sportsmen’s Act.

“There’s nothing sporting about wolf slaughter, elephant poaching or lead
poisoning,” said Brett Hartl, endangered species policy director at the
Center for Biological Diversity. “In the Sportsmen’s Bill, House
Republicans have once again ignored science and protected special interests
instead of wildlife.”

One of the many bad provisions of the bill not only strips protection from
wolves but forbids court challenges. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
illegally stripped federal protections from gray wolves in Michigan,
Wisconsin and Minnesota in 2011 and in Wyoming in 2012. Federal judges
overturned both decisions for failing to follow the requirements of the
Endangered Species Act, failing to follow the best available science and
for prematurely turning management over to state fish and game agencies
that are openly hostile to wolves. A provision in today’s bill would
preempt those court decisions, stop the current appeal process, and
permanently end federal protections for gray wolves in Wyoming and the
Great Lakes.

A separate provision of the Sportsmen’s Act would stop a proposed
regulation from the Fish and Wildlife Service designed to curtail the ivory
trade inside the United States, which is the second-largest market in the
world for ivory, after China. Elephant populations across Africa have
plummeted due to the ongoing poaching epidemic, with forest elephants
declining by 60 percent over the last decade. The illegal trade in elephant
ivory funnels millions of dollars to the black market, fueling corruption
and funding conflict in African nations.

“If this misguided legislation is enacted into law, elephants are likely to
go extinct in our lifetime,” said Hartl. “Republicans are sacrificing one
of the most magnificent animals ever to walk the Earth to protect the
ability of a few rich collectors to keep their ivory trinkets.”

Similarly, the bill creates a dangerous loophole that allows trophy-hunted
polar bears to be imported. Two-thirds of polar bears are expected to be
wiped out by 2050 due to climate change, and the species is predicted to
near extinction by the end of the century.

Another provision of the Sportsmen’s Bill would permanently exempt lead
fishing tackle from any regulation under the Toxic Substances Control Act.
Lead is an extremely toxic substance that is dangerous to people and
wildlife at almost all levels. Animals are poisoned when they eat lost
fishing weights, mistaking them for food or grit; some die a painful, rapid
death from lead poisoning, while others suffer for years from its slowly
debilitating effects.

“There is no safe level of lead in the environment. This provision will
result in more poisoned wildlife — hardly what any real sportsmen would
want,” said Hartl. “We phased lead out of waterfowl ammunition, paint,
gasoline and toys. It’s time for Congress to stop catering to industry and
start looking out for the health of the American people and our wildlife.”

Since the Republicans took control of the House in 2011 there have been
hundreds of legislative attacks on the environment, including more than 177
on endangered species and the Endangered Species Act. In 2015 more than 70
bills targeted endangered species. Republicans also introduced legislation
designed to limit the ability of citizens to go to court in defense of
species. Earlier this year the Center released a report
<http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2015/endangered-species-act-07-28-2015.html>
documenting
a 600 percent increase in these legislative attacks since the Supreme
Court's landmark *Citizens United* ruling allowing special interests to
make virtually unlimited campaign contributions.
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