Weekly News Roundup- October 11, 2013

What’s happening at National Wildlife Federation this week?

Everyone is affected by the shutdown. Read these blogs to find out how the shutdown can affect you and your community.

• Environmental education. The Government Shutdown Puts D.C.’s Environmental Education on Hold.
• Sportsmen. It’s Shutdown Season: As hunting seasons open across the country, Congress is shutting it down.
• Outdoor recreation. Local communities are losing fall tourism revenue and families are unable to hunt on wildlife refuges
• Public Lands. For Public Lands, the Shutdown is About more than National Parks
• Wildlife. What the Government Shutdown Means for Wildlife 

 

However, keep in mind…

There are also state parks you can visit! Here are 7 great alternative parks to visit during the shutdown.

-Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve in California

How can you make your voice heard during the shutdown?

Let members of Congress know that you have their back to support a clean continuing budget resolution. Here are a few ways to do that:

• Read, share & comment on any of the shutdown-related posts at Wildlife Promise.
• Have an image that shows your shutdown story, and how is it affecting you, your livelihood, your community? Share your personal shutdown story with a link to our Action Alert.

And now here are highlights from NWF in the news:

American News: Why wildlife groups embrace large farmers and crop insurance

That’s one of the reasons that DU, Pheasants Forever, the Environmental Defense Fund, the National Wildlife Federation and others teamed up with major farm organizations earlier this year to fight means testing on crop insurance in exchange for linking the popular risk management program to conservation compliance requirements.

Sun Sentinel: City hosts tree and plant care workshop

One difference this year was the concentrated effort to encourage residents to create a wildlife habitat certified by the National Wildlife Federation. Using a simple checklist, residents can turn their yards into animal habitats by offering food and water sources, shelter and a place to raise offspring. After filling out that checklist and sending it off with a $20 application fee, the yard is certified.

Ammoland.com: Importance of Waters and Wetlands Documented in New EPA Report

Ducks Unlimited, the Izaak Walton League of America, the National Wildlife Federation, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and Trout Unlimited convened the forum to illustrate the importance of the new report in the Clean Water Act’s ability to maintain and restore the integrity of the nation’s waters and wetlands.

St. Louis Public Radio: New Pipeline Across Missouri, Illinois Is A Lot Like Keystone – But Have You Heard Of It?

But Logan Smith says the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has refused to release the documents requested at the start of the year. So last month the Coalition sued them. And they aren’t alone. The Sierra Club and the National Wildlife Federation have also filed suit against the Corps over the Enbridge project.