A loggerhead hatchling crawls through the surf, its first struggle to reach the water nearly over and a new journey ahead in the ocean. Photo by Jacqueline Orsulak.

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Loggerhead Sea Turtles Need Protections Enforced

September 16 – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced today its decision to list five populations of the loggerhead sea turtles as endangered. The four other populations will continue to be listed as threatened.

“Like all other sea turtles in U.S. waters, the loggerhead sea turtle continues to face tough challenges, first among them death by drowning in fishing gear due to inadequate protections and actions to save them,” said Doug Inkley, senior scientist with the National Wildlife Federation.

NWF Decries President Obama Delay on Climate Action

September 15 – Just days after shelving long needed action to reduce ozone and smog pollution that costs the nation billions, today the Obama administration said it was delaying action on climate change that would rein in carbon pollution from power plants. Joe Mendelson, NWF policy director, climate and energy programs said:

“Delaying action puts our nation unacceptably at risk from the ravages of air pollution and climate change. With record summer heat, fires raging in Texas and unprecedented floods in the Northeast, the costly impacts of global warming have never been clearer.

New York Takes Major Step Forward on Offshore Wind

September 15 - New York’s leading environmental organizations and the National Wildlife Federation applauded Governor Cuomo today for taking action to restart the process for pursuing offshore wind energy.

Today, a lease application was submitted for the Long Island – New York City Offshore Wind Project  – a collaborative effort by New York Power Authority, Long Island Power Authority, and Con Edison to build an offshore wind farm 13 miles off the Rockaway Peninsula.  The move is a victory for clean energy development that will be critical to slowing the pace of global warming. Wind power is also a potential job engine that can boost sagging economies.

BP’s Negligence “Contributing Cause” of Gulf Oil Disaster 

September 14 - Two new reports blame a rush to drill for the explosion that led to the Gulf oil disaster that killed 11 workers, thousands of birds, hundreds of endangered sea turtles, and dozens of dolphins. First, a new federal government report points to BP’s corner-cutting as a key factor in the disaster. And from the Associated Press, new details on information BP may have ignored in its push to complete the ill-fated well.

“This report confirms what we knew from the first days of the oil disaster when BP was pushing a deliberately and absurdly low estimate of the gusher’s size – that BP has put its own legal liability before the Gulf’s people and wildlife,” said Larry Schweiger, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “It also demonstrates that Congress must pass comprehensive restoration legislation to make sure BP’s fines and penalties are dedicated to making the Gulf whole.”

And here are highlights from NWF in the News:

• Reuters: Obama EPA delaying more pollution curbs
• Providence Business News: Fuel-efficient vehicles linked to economic vitality

For more, visit www.nwf.org/News

A loggerhead's life span can range from 30 years to 50 years or more

Loggerhead sea turtles must wait a bit longer to find out whether or not they will receive stronger protections under the Endangered Species Act.

More than a year after a proposal was filed to change the status of loggerheads from “threatened” to “endangered,” federal agencies charged with making the decision have announced they need an additional six months to analyze the data and come to an agreement.

According to this announcement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS), the extension is needed because “substantial disagreement exists regarding the interpretation of the existing data on status and trends and its relevance to the assessment of risk of extinction…”

While these agencies mull their decision, loggerheads continue to struggle. As outlined in a recent report by National Wildlife Federation, Florida Wildlife Federation, and Sea Turtle Conservancy, sea turtles are beleaguered by an array of stressors related to human activities, including:

• Loss of habitat
• Beach armoring
• Artificial lighting
• Harmful fishing practices
• Marine pollution and debris
• Oil spills
• Global warming

Given their generally decreasing nesting numbers, National Wildlife Federation has strongly supported the effort to reclassify loggerhead sea turtles as endangered. In addition to submitting our own comments to NMFS and FWS last year, we asked our wildlife advocates to voice their support as well. Together, we generated more than 21,000 public comments in support of stronger protections for loggerhead sea turtles.

For those who missed the chance to take action on behalf of these amazing animals, it is not too late. The public comment period has been reopened until April 11, 2011. If you have not done so already, please take the time to speak up in support of stronger protections for loggerhead sea turtles.

In July 2002, on Cocoa Beach, Florida, a morning workout with my mom turned into being crossing guards for a line of newly hatched sea turtles. My mom and I simply watched in silence as the tiny creatures waddled out of their nest, scurrying across the sand, and into the low tide. It took all my strength not to run after their five-inch shells and place the reptiles safely into the water.

Even if I wanted to, I can’t sit on the beaches and wait for every clutch to hatch, but in a matter of seconds today, I was able to take action to help strengthen the level of protection for one particular species of sea turtles.

The Current Conditions for Loggerhead Sea Turtles

Loggerhead sea turtles are found primarily in the United States along the beaches and coastlines of Florida, Georgia, and North and South Carolina. But sadly, their numbers all around the globe are declining – from the Mediterranean and Arabian Sea, back to the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. In Florida alone, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported in 2009 that loggerhead sea turtles represented the fourth lowest count since the Index Survey Beach Index began in 1989–with a 38 percent decline from 1998 to 2009.

Even though all seven classifications of sea turtles that reside in U.S. waters are currently protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), there are still outstanding reasons for the decline of loggerhead sea turtles.  Furthermore, the conditions of their nesting habitat have also gone from bad to worse, as the numbers of stranded turtles went six-fold over the past decade from a variety of development on beaches; such as stores and hotels.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA), 1070 sea turtles were displaced or killed from the oil spill, with 21 loggerhead sea turtles found alive and 53 dead. But it is the next set of numbers that took me back to the morning on the beach in Florida: 13,473 loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings and 273 nests were trans-located from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean because of the oil spill. Luckily, these baby sea turtles had help, but the sad reality is not all turtles will receive this type of care.

How You Can Help Make a Difference

Right now, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Services and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) are in the process of determining whether to re-classify loggerhead sea turtles from “threatened” to “endangered,” under the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA)–a move which would help guarantee stronger protections for our country’s most well known species of sea turtles.

More protection today equals more loggerhead sea turtles in the future, so what we can do for them now without becoming crossing guards is urge the NMFS to strengthen protections for loggerhead sea turtles.

By treating loggerhead sea turtles as a priority, we can preserve one of the earth’s oldest creatures for future generations; and even though being a turtle crossing guard does sound like fun, we can keep our day jobs too!

by Megan Blevins, National Wildlife Federation