http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/science_blog/index.php/tools/blocks/wordpress_entries/rss.php?bID=267&cID=147 Copyright 2013 http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=361 In July 2012, SCB launched a entirely redesigned website, which includes frequently updated policy news. Although we will maintain an archive of older posts on this site, we encourage you to visit the new Policy Page at conbio.org for direct access to blog posts and other information. You can access regular updates on conservation policy [...] Thu, 30 Aug 2012 23:52:32 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=356 On July 12, the Society for Conservation Biology submitted formal comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on ways to improve voluntary conservation initiatives for declining and endangered species. Over half of the species protected by the Endangered Species Act (ESA) rely to some extent on habitat found on private or State-owned lands. Accordingly, [...] Fri, 13 Jul 2012 19:05:35 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=352 On July 5th, SCB submitted formal comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) on the revised critical habitat of the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina) under the Endangered Species Act.  The FWS is proposing to designate up to 13.9 million acres as critical habitat for the Northern Spotted Owl (NSO).  SCB strongly [...] Fri, 06 Jul 2012 22:07:49 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=348 On July 5, 2012, the Society for Conservation Biology submitted a formal petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) requesting that these agencies strengthen their regulations on critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act. Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) requires that all [...] Fri, 06 Jul 2012 22:03:54 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=343 On July 5th, the North America Section of SCB submitted formal comments on the economic analysis of the benefits and impacts of the revised critical habitat proposal for the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina).  Despite the rapid advances in ecological economics to quantify environmental benefits and values, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) [...] Fri, 06 Jul 2012 21:59:55 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=339 On July 2, the Society for Conservation Biology, on behalf of its Marine Section, submitted formal comments to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) within the Department of Interior regarding its draft programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) regarding possible geological and geophysical seismic activities in support of oil and gas exploration and development in [...] Fri, 06 Jul 2012 21:55:08 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=330 On June 18, the Society for Conservation Biology and the American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) submitted formal comments (available here) to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) regarding the agency’s proposal to remove the Eastern Distinct Population Segment of Steller Sea Lion from the list of threatened and endangered species. Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) [...] Tue, 19 Jun 2012 23:29:33 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=322 On June 12, 2012, the Society for Conservation Biology, on behalf of its North America and Marine Sections submitted a formal petition (link) to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) requesting that these agencies restore the global geographic scope of the Endangered Species Act’s consultation requirement. [...] Tue, 12 Jun 2012 22:03:59 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=311 Panama City, 23 April 2012 – After several years of international negotiations, the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was finally established. IPBES aims to accomplish for conservation science what the highly successful IPCC has accomplished for climate science questions. SCB has participated in the negotiations and will continue to focus on IPBES [...] Mon, 23 Apr 2012 20:15:31 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=304 On April 20, the second anniversary of BP’s Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, SCB, along with three other scientific societies (The Wildlife Society, Ornithological Council, and the Society for Ecological Restoration), asked the Department of Justice to seek fines for the loss of protected wildlife that was caused by the spill. The [...] Fri, 20 Apr 2012 03:24:31 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=283 Several international scientific societies joined together on April 2 in asking the Department of the Interior (DOI) to reconsider its proposal for expansion of commercial timber harvesting in critical habitat for threatened Northern Spotted Owls in the Pacific Northwest. In a letter to DOI Secretary Ken Salazar, the Society for Conservation Biology, The Wildlife Society, [...] Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:04:35 PDT http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=265 Today, the Society for Conservation Biology submitted extensive comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service concerning the Services’ proposal to define and implement the U.S. Endangered Species Act’s phrase “significant portion of its range.” Because the U.S. Endangered Species Act allows the Services to list species as threatened [...] Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:51:56 PST http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=249 The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) contains some of the most powerful mandates to preserve biodiversity on our public lands. NFMA requires the Forest Service to maintain all plant and animal species found on forests and grasslands as viable components in their ecosystems. On January 26, the federal government finalized a new set of regulations [...] Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:04:17 PST http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=242 Bialowieza Forest is the last lowland primeval forest within the European Union. It is a unique biodiversity hotspot and a fascinating source of scientific knowledge. It represents a much needed ecological blue-print for the restoration of forests in Europe. In 2003, SCB’s European Section delivered a resolution concerning the preservation of the Bialowieza Forest to [...] Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:20:16 PST http://www.klamathconservation.org/science_blog/scbpolicyblog/?p=233 Non-native insects and pathogens are seriously harming natural and human-managed forests. Invasive pests and forest diseases, in concert with other anthropogenic disturbances such as land clearing and changes in fire regimes, are dramatically altering the composition and structure of many forests in North America, the United Kingdom, continental Europe, Australia, China, Africa and elsewhere. Further, [...] Sat, 21 Jan 2012 17:37:25 PST