The Senate and the Sea

Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) fittingly represents the Ocean State in the United States Senate. At Capitol Hill Oceans Week Sen. Whitehouse had this to say: “The oceans can do a lot of things, but they can’t speak for themselves.”

This week, conservation champions from across the country spoke for the oceans.

https://twitter.com/Sara_GRK/status/342679939696451585

At the National Wildlife Federation, we couldn’t agree more.

In a hearing yesterday, Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) examined progress towards restoring the Gulf of Mexico three years since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion. The witnesses recognized the urgent need:

Rachel Jacobsen, Acting Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks for DOI, "The time to start restoration is now." #Gulfhearing

— Restore the Delta (@RestoreDelta) June 6, 2013

https://twitter.com/Sara_GRK/status/342659750338637824

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There’s a reason that the Senate Commerce Committee has jurisdiction over the oceans. Every witness acknowledged how integral the health of the marine environment is to national economic prosperity.

https://twitter.com/Sara_GRK/status/342664309639356416

"Our economy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the environment" says George Neugent, Monroe County, FL Mayor. #Gulfhearing

— Restore the Delta (@RestoreDelta) June 6, 2013

https://twitter.com/Sara_GRK/status/342672831890472960

Tomorrow is World Oceans Day.

But our lives are tied to the fate of our natural resources every day. So to Senator Whitehouse’s point (and Senator Landrieu’s, Senator Nelson’s, and Senator Wicker’s too!), speak up for the environment. Government officials just might join the conversation.