Good letter, Phyllis.


On Dec 19, 2009, at 5:54 a, Phyllis Mains wrote:
> Environmental plan needed for the Arctic
>
> December 19, 2009
>
> There is at present an open U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Public  
> comment period for the proposed critical habitat for the polar bear.
>
> Polar bears have become the canary in the coal mine for climate  
> change, as more and more are seen struggling in open waters of the  
> melting Arctic Ocean. If current conditions continue, experts  
> believe the entire Arctic polar bear population could disappear by  
> 2050.
>
> The Interior Department has proposed more than 200,000 square miles  
> of America's Arctic as polar bear critical habitat under the  
> Endangered Species Act. But those protections are meaningless if oil  
> drilling is allowed inside their critical habitat.
>
> Currently, almost the entire Arctic Ocean has been proposed for oil  
> and gas development. Commercial fishing has been declared on hold  
> until more study can be done to access the impacts on the Arctic  
> environment.
>
> Any new offshore oil and gas development should be put on hold until  
> a comprehensive plan based on sound science and traditional  
> knowledge is developed to determine if, where, when and how such  
> activities should occur.
>
> - Phyllis Mains, chair, Alaska Coalition of Iowa, Van Wert


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