Weekly News Roundup: Outdoor Enthusiasts are Ticked Off and More

NWF   |   August 22, 2014

Climate change is threatening America’s outdoor culture, according to a new report by the National Wildlife Federation. Ticked Off: America’s Outdoor Experience and Climate Change explains how manmade climate change has provided favorable conditions for many bothersome pests and plants, making our outdoor experience less enjoyable. Wildlife are also experiencing less enjoyable conditions outdoors, take a second to read what bugs them!

Hiking, backpacking, camping, and fishing are just a few of the many values enjoyed by visitors to Western public lands like Colorado's Collegiate Peaks Wilderness. (Photo by Russell Bassett)
Enjoying the great outdoors. Photo by Russell Bassett
In other news, Oregon wildlife are winning! The Oregon Department of State Lands rejected a permit for Ambre Energy’s Morrow Pacific coal export project along the Columbia River. Thanks to this permit rejection, orcas and wildlife in the Pacific Northwest are safe from dirty coal!

Take Action! Tell the Environmental Protection Agency that you support limits on carbon pollution from new coal-fired power plants!

 

What’s happening at the National Wildlife Federation this week?

New Report: Summer Pests like Ticks, Mosquitoes & Toxic Algae Worsened by Climate Change

Pamela WanamakerAugust 19 – Toxic algae outbreaks like the one that poisoned drinking water in Lake Erie are just one of many summer threats being worsened by manmade climate change, according to a new report from the National Wildlife Federation. Ticked Off: America’s Outdoor Experience and Climate Change explains how deer ticks, tiger mosquitoes and fire ants are getting a boost from warmer temperatures and milder winters – and in the case of poison ivy, from carbon pollution itself.

“At a time when disconnect from nature is already harming the health and well-being of America’s children, climate change is now adding a new obstacle for parents by giving a boost to annoying summer pests,” said Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “We need to act now to protect America’s outdoors by using climate-smart conservation strategies and by cutting climate-disrupting industrial carbon pollution, and the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed limits are an important step in the right direction.”

 

NWF in the News:

USA Today: Climate Change means more bugs, slimy ponds

“From a surge in disease-carrying ticks and Tiger mosquitoes to increases in toxic algae blooms, the symptoms of climate change are rapidly affecting America’s relationship with the great outdoors, the National Wildlife Federation warned Tuesday.”

The Washington Examiner: Oregon agency stings coal industry as it nixes key permit

“I would not underestimate the ability to win on the Clean Water Act,” Michael O’Leary, a spokesman with the National Wildlife Federation, told the Washington Examiner.

The Hill: Green warn climate change could ruin ‘outdoor’ experience

“The climate crisis is really impacting the outdoor American experience,” said Collin O’Mara, president of NWF. “When you talk to hunters, anglers, canoers, everyone on the ground will tell you things are changing.”

The Prairie Star: Sustainable agriculture is a gold mine for rural entrepreneurs

“There’s a new opening for rural America to create jobs and make farming more future-friendly, according to a new report from the National Wildlife Federation. The Growing Business of Cover Crops details new business opportunities arising from a resurgence in the ancient practice of cover crops.”

The Denver Post: “Other” Brown Canyon provides spectacular solitude, needs protection

“I’ve been asked why we need to make Browns Canyon a national monument – why can’t we just leave it as it is?” said Bill Dvorak, a local rafting outfitter, hunter and longtime advocate of both Wilderness and monument designation. “My response has always been that if we do nothing, there’s no way to ensure Browns Canyon and its wilderness will in fact be left as it is. Without the protections of the national monument bill, the federal lands could be sold off, mined or mismanaged under future federal administrations.”