Bighorn sheep pair on the shoulder of Mt. Everts in Yellowstone

Bighorn sheep rut in Yellowstone

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Two bison during the annual rut in Hayden Valley in Yellowstone

A tender moment during the elk rut at Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone

Scenes from the Yellowstone Elk Rut

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A misguided mating attempt between two Pacific chorus frogs in Yosemite

Pacific chorus frogs at Gaylor Lake in Yosemite

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River otter on the Yellowstone River in Hayden Valley share a cutthroat trout

Canada geese pair on the Gardner River at the north entrance of Yellowstone

Two bald eagles in Lamar Valley in Yellowstone

“Solar power is an important new source of renewable domestic energy. Done right, we can produce energy, generate jobs and conserve hunting and fishing on our public lands.”

Kate Zimmerman, Senior Policy Advisor for NWF

Photo by Flickr's Living Off Grid

“I’m directing my administration to allow the development of clean energy on enough public land to power 3 million homes,” the president declared in the State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.

Sounds great in theory, but how does he propose managing the complexity of both promoting such a land-intensive use and conserving vital fish and wildlife habitats?

Finally, a Plan

For the past three years the U.S. Department of Interior and Department of Energy have been developing a solar energy program for public lands in six Western states that can achieve both of those goals. Last year, the agencies unveiled an environmental review of the program and accepted public comments until last Friday. Now, these comments will lead to the implementation of a final solar program later this year – a roadmap for sustainable, environmentally responsible solar energy development.

At the heart of what it is a very complex proposal is a very simple idea – Solar Energy Zones (SEZs). These are areas of public land with high energy potential – accessible to transmission – that have been reviewed and determined to already be degraded or otherwise have low potential for negative impacts to wildlife, habitat, recreation, or other uses.

Sportsmen Speak on Solar

To better understand this planning process for appropriately locating and designing solar energy facilities, NWF helped pulled together sportsmen from across the nation last December near Las Vegas. This event clarified to policy makers the needs and concerns of hunters and anglers in this process, and set the stage for opportunities for sportsmen to engage as Solar Energy Zones are designated, giving them a seat at the table as plans are developed to mitigate the impact solar development on desert wildlife.

NWF Supports …

NWF wholeheartedly endorses the designation of Solar Energy Zones. The SEZs represent a new approach to meeting our clean energy goals in a wildlife-friendly manner – one that will avoid the fragmentation of important wildlife habitats that has occurred as a result of other commercial activities on public lands, such as oil and gas drilling. The best path going forward will guide development to identified public lands, consolidating related infrastructure and resulting in less total land disturbance. Needed clean energy can be built faster, cheaper, with less opposition from other public land users, and in a sustainable manner.

With some additional work to limit development outside the designated zones, exclude vital habitat and movement corridors for Desert bighorn sheep, elk, pronghorn, and Greater sage-grouse from development zones, and provide adequate mitigation for habitat losses, the proposed solar zoning framework represents the kind of initiatives NWF is pursuing in removing barriers from wildlife-friendly renewable energy.

1. The remarkable life of Yellowstone wolf 495M: A friend of mine sponsored a radio collar in my name for 495M. When I lived in Yellowstone, I followed his adventures as the alpha male of Mollie’s Pack. He died this year, but had a remarkable life and got to live and die like a true wolf. Read the full story here >>

495M while tranquilized for research (Photo: Yellowstone Wolf Project)

Late bison calf "Zisa" in Yellowstone (photo by Beth Pratt)

The pika who ran over my foot poses for a photo. (Photo by Beth Pratt)

Two bald eagles in one day in the Sierra (photo by Beth Pratt)

The joy of dancing penquins (photo by Beth Pratt)

Desert bighorn sheep in Anza-Borrego State Park (photo by Beth Pratt)

Black bear in Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite (photo by Beth Pratt)

The life of a frog in my backyard pond (Photos by Beth Pratt)

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10. Ranger Rick at the Ahwahnee Hotel: During the first meeting of NWF’s California Advisory Council, we had a special visitor—Ranger Rick came to Yosemite! Also in the photo, council member Jack Laws, the talented naturalist and author of The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada.

Ranger Rick in Yosemite! With myself and Jack Laws.

Via Flickr's Adam Fagen

That’s not to say the last year hasn’t been without progress in Washington. The Environmental Protection Agency set long-overdue limits on mercury pollution that will prevent 11,000 premature deaths a year. The EPA and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration set new fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks that will cut our oil addiction by billions of barrels. And the EPA is ready to establish landmark global warming pollution limits on power plants.

But those actions represent the Obama administration implementing past acts of Congress, often in the face of opposition from one or both parties in the current Congress. Inside the Capitol, many members of Congress spent 2011 attacking wildlife, trying to roll back public health protections, and doing the bidding of its Big Oil donors.

10. The Dirty Water Act

Yes, 2011 will be remembered as the year Congress decided America’s water was just too darn clean, attacking the Clean Water Act and investment in clean water programs. The Dirty Water Act passed the House and now Senators Dean Heller (R-NV) and John Barasso (R-WY) have been working to sneak it through the Senate by trying to attach it as a political rider to must-pass budget legislation. Get Smart: Tell Congress to protect river otters’ streams from pollution.

9. Banning Imaginary Regulations

The Environmental Protection Agency has no plans to regulate farm dust, but that didn’t stop a bipartisan majority in the House from passing the Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act. “Since I am sure that many little girls all over America care about this deeply, can you commit to me that EPA will never try to regulate fairy dust?” Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) jokingly asked EPA assistant administrator Gina McCarthy. The Senate has no plans to take up the bill and President Obama has promised to veto it. Get Smart: Learn what pollutants are real threats to America’s wildlife and public health.

8. Lunch Special: Meat Loaf with Styrene Oligomers

When she served as House Speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) led an effort to green the Capitol that cut energy use 23%, water use 32% and used some of the savings to convert Congressional cafeterias to composting.  But when Republicans took charge of the House in 2011, they eliminated the composting program, diverted cafeteria waste back to a landfill, and brought back petroleum-based Styrofoam that can leech toxic styrene oligomers into the food it holds, increasing thyroid hormone levels. Get Smart: Use your own reusable container.

7. Politics Superseding Wildlife Biology

Just two of many examples: The U.S. Forest Service had closed much of Idaho’s Payette National Forest to domestic sheep grazing where conflicts with bighorns exist, hoping to protect bighorns from disease, but the budget bill that cleared Congress in December included a political rider reversing that decision. And the House GOP budget (H.R. 1) included language aimed at blocking implementation of two biological opinions intended to ensure the recovery of threatened and endangered salmon, steelhead, green sturgeon, and other species in the San Francisco Bay-Delta ecosystem. Get Smart: Support wildlife protections through NWF’s Choose Your Cause.

6. Targeting Smokey Bear

Who could want to kill Smokey Bear? Answer: Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), who included the U.S. Forest Service’s conservation education program in its list of possible targets for the House GOP’s YouCut voting. Voters spared Smokey, but the incident spoke volumes about how little this Congress valued investments in conservation education. Get Smart: Take Smokey’s pledge to be smart whenever you go outdoors.

5. Gulf Coast: Still Not Made Whole

We’re just a few months from the 2nd anniversary of start of the Gulf oil disaster, yet Congress still has not acted on legislation to make sure BP’s fines and penalties are reinvested in Mississippi River Delta restoration. Get Smart: Ask your members of Congress to support the RESTORE Act.

4. War on Next-Generation Light Bulbs

Just a few years ago, President George W. Bush signed bipartisan legislation to encourage energy-efficient light bulbs. Industry gets certainty, consumers save money, America cuts its carbon footprint: Everybody wins! But extremists attacked the standards and when they couldn’t win votes, they snuck the Dim Bulb Act into must-pass budget legislation. “Big companies like General Electric, Philips and Osram Sylvania spent big bucks preparing for the standards, and the industry is fuming over the GOP bid to undercut them,” reported Politico. Everybody loses! Get Smart: Check out NWF’s Cool It! tips for greening your home, office and garden.

3. Push Pipeline First, Ask Safety Questions Later

Facing concerns from conservationists concerned about protecting critical wildlife habitat, landowners concerned about getting their land seized, and public health advocates worried about water supplies, the Obama administration delayed a decision on the proposed Keystone XL tar sands pipeline from the Canadian border to Texas. But before a revised route could even be drawn up, Big Oil’s Congressional allies tacked a political rider onto the payroll tax cut extension moving through Congress right now that would force a decision on the pipeline within 60 days. Get Smart: Ask our elected officials to keep dirty oil out of whooping crane habitat.

2. Protecting Tax Giveaways for Big Oil

Big Oil has already banked a staggering $101 billion in profits in 2011,  and as NWF detailed in Conservation Works, Congress can save more than $100 billion by closing tax loopholes for special interests like the oil and gas industries. But time after time, purported Congressional concern about the deficit came in a distant second to catering to Big Oil donors and lobbyists. Get Smart: Stand up for new vehicle fuel efficiency standards to reduce America’s dependence on dirty oil.

1. Fiddling While Our Climate Burns

Our world has now seen 321 consecutive months with a global temperature above the 20^th century average, meaning we haven’t seen a below-average temperature month since before The Goonies came out in 1985. Extreme weather records fell, with NOAA reporting 12 disasters of at least $1 billion in damage here in the U.S. Through November, 2011 has been the 11th-hottest year on record. If the pace keeps up, it will mean each of the last 11 years (2001–2011) will have been one of the 12 hottest on record. The Arctic continues to warm, melting sea ice and pushing several polar bear populations to the brink.

How has Congress reacted? Sen. John Barasso introduced legislation to not only prohibit the EPA from regulating carbon pollution, but ban the federal government even from observing what is happening with our climate. The House GOP’s H.R. 1 tried to cut programs to invest in clean energy innovation and to help people and wildlife adapt to our warming climate. Get Smart: Tell your members of Congress you support limits on carbon pollution under the Clean Air Act.

Do you have any dishonorable mentions to add to the list? Leave your comments below.

With your help, the National Wildlife Federation worked to keep many of these dumb ideas from becoming law. But with the same Congress returning in 2012, you can bet we’ll see even more attacks on our wildlife, air, land, water and public health in the year ahead.

Support National Wildlife Federation’s work on to stop dirty fuels and the Keystone XL pipeline at our Choose Your Cause website.

Bighorn Sheep on Wild Horse Island

My favorite wildlife species on the island are the bighorn sheep.  Catching a glimpse of the majestic, curved horns on a ram makes a tough hike totally worth it.  The males are large, occasionally getting up to over 350 lb with horns that can weigh up to 30 lb.

Once numbering in the millions, this iconic wild western species had crashed to only several thousand in the early 20^th century.  Today, bighorn sheep populations represent only 70% of historic levels.

Bighorn sheep protections are under threat once again—this time from Congress.  National Wildlife Federation and Idaho Wildlife Federation’s efforts to protect bighorns scored a major victory earlier this year, but some in Congress are trying to reverse that success.

A “Bad Bighorn Sheep Rider” may find its way into a package of appropriations bills which is being negotiated right now.  The policy rider would reverse an important Forest Service decision to close much of Idaho’s Payette National Forest to domestic sheep grazing where conflicts with bighorns exist.

Protecting and rebuilding Bighorn Sheep populations depends upon effective separation from domestic sheep, according to extensive research and field experience by  wildlife managers and researchers from throughout the West (including Idaho Wildlife Federation and the Nez Perce).

If this bad wildlife rider passes, it would set a precedent that would ensure that bighorns will continue to die off across the west.  Entire herds are at risk of disappearing for the benefit of a couple ranching interests.  Not to mention the rider would jeopardize big hunting and outdoor recreation dollars bighorn sheep generate for western communities.

Rob Fraser, President of the Idaho Wildlife Federation, laid out what is at stake in a recent guest opinion article:

“Bighorn sheep are an icon of Idaho and vitally important to sportsmen and all Idahoans who cherish wildlife and the rugged fabric that makes the state special. We can’t take what we have in Idaho for granted and let politics trump science, forcing our land managers to do nothing while domestic sheep roam alongside wild bighorn sheep. The loss of native bighorn sheep populations such as those in the Salmon River Mountains would denigrate the legacy of wildlife diversity for future generations.”

Keep checking Wildlife Promise for more information on all the different harmful policy riders that could make it into the appropriations bills.

National Wildlife Federation Announces New Ranger Rick Geocache Trails

June 17, 2011 – National Wildlife Federation is launching Ranger Rick’s Geocache Trails, a fun outdoor adventure for kids and their families. To establish trails in numerous communities throughout the country, National Wildlife Federation is looking for more parks, nature centers, and other outdoor recreational sites to serve as trail hosts in their area. Ranger Rick’s trails marry GPS-enabled treasure hunting, or geocaching, with a wildlife-themed game featuring Ranger Rick and his pals from the award-winning children’s magazine published by National Wildlife Federation.

Ranger Rick Joins Maryland First Lady Katie O’Malley for Great American Backyard Campout Event

June 16, 2011 – First Lady Katie O’Malley kicked-off the Great American Backyard Campout with help from the National Wildlife Federation and Maryland Park Service by pitching a tent with a group of local kids on the Government House lawn. “Camp under the stars” is one of ten outdoor activities that make up the Maryland Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights, introduced by Governor Martin O’Malley in 2009.

House Appropriations Committee Blocks Clean Water Protections

June 16, 2011 – The House Appropriations Committee recently blocked efforts to restore Clean Water Act protections for streams that supply drinking water to 117 million Americans and wetlands that provide flood protection and critical fish and wildlife habitat. The committee rejected an amendment by Representative Jim Moran (D-VA) that would have allowed the Army Corps of Engineers to revise guidance to its staff on this issue. By voting against this amendment, the Appropriations Committee is upholding a dangerous status quo of wetlands loss, stream impairment, and regulatory confusion.

National Wildlife Federation Tells Congress to Stop Playing with America’s Food and Energy Security

June 16, 2011 – Today, the House voted to slash over $1 billion in conservation and renewable energy funding from programs that help farmers, ranchers, and foresters across the country to protect soil, conserve water, enhance wildlife habitat, and help America meet its growing energy demands. The conservation programs that were cut directly benefit sportsmen and rural economies through the creation of hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreational opportunities.

National Wildlife Federation Applauds Senate Vote to End Ethanol Subsidies

June 16, 2011 – Recently, the Senate overwhelmingly voted to end more than $6 billion in ethanol subsidies. The move will save taxpayers money and protect wildlife and the environment. “The National Wildlife Federation praises today’s congressional action to end wasteful and damaging ethanol subsidies,” said Julie Sibbing, director of the agriculture program for the National Wildlife Federation.

Virginia Middle School Awarded Second Public Green Flag Award

June 15, 2011 – Just one week after America’s first public Green Flag was raised in Boston, the second followed some 460 miles to the south. Fairfax’s Lanier Middle School was awarded Virginia’s first Eco-Schools USA Green Flag—just the second American public school so honored—in a ceremony today, denoting exceptional achievement in ‘greening’ school grounds, operations and curricula.

Keystone XL Tar Sands Bill Clears House Subcommittee

June 15, 2011 – A subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved legislation today that forces the Obama administration to make a decision on the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline by November. The bill is expected to pass the full committee next week and would likely get a floor vote next month.

National Wildlife Federation Brings Climate-Smart Conservation to the Great Lakes

June 15, 2011 – Climate change is bringing new challenges to the Great Lakes region and changing the way communities think about conservation. The National Wildlife Federation and EcoAdapt are working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to reduce the vulnerability of the Great Lakes area by developing methods to ensure that coastal planning and restoration projects are “climate-smart.”

High School Students Use their Talents to Raise Money for Wildlife

June 15, 2011 – Environmental Clubs from Grayslake North and Central High Schools in Grayslake, Illinois, celebrated Earth Week 2011 with a benefit talent show where all proceeds were used to adopt animals from the National Wildlife Federation’s Adopt An Animal program.

Sportsmen To Congress: Use Oil Spill Fines to Restore the Gulf

June 14, 2011 – Outdoor industry leaders from across the country are meeting with their members of Congress today, urging them to dedicate the Clean Water Act penalties from last summer’s oil spill towards restoring the Gulf.

NWF to Honor Lawrence Bender, Anderson Cooper, Alyssa Milano, and Howard Ruby

June 13, 2011 – As the National Wildlife Federation continues to celebrate its 75th anniversary this year, the organization will honor four individuals committed to protecting wildlife during its “Voices For Wildlife” gala, to be held at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel on June 15.

Bighorn Sheep Victory in Payette National Forest

June 13, 2011 – It looks like America’s iconic bighorn sheep will be regaining their home on the range. In a landmark decision Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell approved a management plan to phase out domestic sheep grazing on 70,000 acres of bighorn habitat in Payette National Forest. This decision brings to a head a decades-old conflict between the sheep industry and conservationists.

And here are highlights from NWF in the News:

• Huffington Post: Lawrence Bender tells Congress: Stop Denying An Inconvenient Truth
• Great Lakes Echo: New York approves Great Lakes water rules; Wisconsin up next
• WAMU 88.5: Fairfax School Wins International Honor For Sustainability
• Michigan Public Radio: Climate change & Great Lakes restoration

For more, visit www.nwf.org/News

Photo credit: Ryan Hagerty

National Wildlife Federation’s continuing efforts to protect bighorn sheep have scored a major victory.

In March of 2010, NWF joined with partners in Idaho including the Nez Perce tribe and the Idaho Wildlife Federation to provide comments to the Payette National Forest as it prepared an update to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement regarding the effects of domestic sheep grazing on bighorn habitat.

As a result, the Forest Service announced their decision to close much of Payette National Forest to domestic sheep grazing where conflicts exist.

The Forest Service cited “the preponderance of scientific literature” that shows that when domestic sheep come into contact with wild sheep, bighorns contract diseases and die in large numbers.

Prior to the mid-1800s, bighorn sheep were abundant throughout the West, with numbers estimated at 1.5 to 2 million. Large declines occurred because of overharvest, habitat loss, competition for forage, and disease transmission from domestic sheep that grazed in bighorn sheep habitat.

Today, bighorn populations have declined more than 70% from historic levels.

Payette National Forest Outcome To Be Important Precedent

Local wool growers have disputed the decision through a formal appeals process. National Wildlife Federation and its partners have also filed an appeal in an effort to support the Forest Service, calling for even stronger measures to protect wild bighorn sheep.

Instead of phased implementation, for example, bighorns and domestic sheep should be separated immediately while we develop more robust monitoring and evaluation directives and other mechanisms that encourage population growth and sustainability. This battle is likely to move into the legal realm, and by filing an appeal now, NWF and its allies will ensure that we have the legal standing to intervene effectively.

This is shaping up to be a key, precedent-setting legal contest with many other states watching carefully, as the outcome has the potential to influence how bighorns are managed on public lands throughout the West.

NWF Helping Nez Perce Monitor Bighorn Sheep

National Wildlife Federation has also provided equipment and resources, such as funding for GPS collars, collaborating with the Nez Perce tribe so they can more effectively monitor bighorn movements on the Payette National Forest and Hells Canyon.

Much of the tribe’s research has informed past decisions impacting bighorn sheep on federal lands. The tribe has been able to demonstrate with geographic accuracy, the range of specific populations. Building the Nez Perce’s capacity to monitor these animals will ultimately help buttress the Forest Service’s decision and provide useful data to the Idaho Department of Game and Fish in support of ongoing management efforts.

Via This American Land & Planet Forward