Long Starved of Resources, it’s Time to Fully Fund the National Wildlife Refuge System

[UngulateNerd92]

Of all the public lands systems in the U.S., the National Wildlife Refuge System is the largest, spanning all 50 states and vast areas of ocean. From tundra and tallgrass prairie to swamps and coastline, the System protects roughly one third of the species listed under the Endangered Species Act and is the only set of public lands managed primarily for protecting imperiled species such as the red wolf, the musk ox and other wildlife that define our American heritage.

Despite these superlatives, the System is chronically underfunded and operates on a threadbare budget, depriving those tasked with protecting wildlife the resources they need. Congress appropriates funds to the Refuge System for various purposes including wildlife and habitat management, planning and visitor services. While the National Park System typically receives billions of dollars, the Refuge System, lacking the same congressional recognition and stature, always receives far less.

Long Starved of Resources, it’s Time to Fully Fund the National Wildlife Refuge System

 

[UngulateNerd92]

Here is another relevant article which was actually cited in the one above.

New Research Shows 80% of Voters Polled Support Big Funding Increases for the National Wildlife Refuge System

“The results of this survey demonstrate that a vast majority of Americans agree more needs to be done to support and expand the National Wildlife Refuge System. Voters realize the importance of investing in this system and see value in building up the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s staffing so that the agency can protect wildlife and provide access to nature.”

- Monica Goldberg, Vice President of Landscape Conservation

“Refuges are critical tools in the fight against climate change and the extinction crisis.They shield our country’s wildlife and provide human access to nature in a world where both are becoming increasingly rare. Voters deeply value the Refuge System and its obvious importance to wildlife."

Christian Hunt, Senior Federal Lands Policy Analyst

New public opinion research from Defenders of Wildlife reveals that 80% of voters polled support increasing funding for the National Wildlife Refuge System, the nation’s only system of lands dedicated to wildlife conservation.

Due to chronic underfunding, the National Wildlife Refuge System has long been starved of adequate management resources. A growing backlog of repairs and the loss of more than 1,000 staff have severely undermined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s ability to fulfill its mission. Despite these challenges, nearly 600 refuges across the country support roughly 60 million visits per year. Broad majorities of voters in Florida, southern California and the intermountain West across party lines and geographies support an investment of $1.5 billion annually for wildlife refuges.

New Research Shows 80% of Voters Polled Support Big Funding Increases for the National Wildlife Refuge System

 

[UngulateNerd92]

@Pantheraman and @birdsandbats I am sure that you guys would have a lot to say about this story.

 

[Pantheraman]

Can't get enough money for this refuge system...add that to the list of wildlife conservation things we suck at.

But hey, at least we're good at treating nature like a game farm.

 

[birdsandbats]

Wisconsin has several large NWRs and funding for them has been difficult in recent years from what I've heard - the two that have breeding Whooping Cranes are getting along fine, but most of them have little to no management personnel at all right now, at least not any that are consistently present.

 

[UngulateNerd92]

Wisconsin has several large NWRs and funding for them has been difficult in recent years from what I've heard - the two that have breeding Whooping Cranes are getting along fine, but most of them have little to no management personnel at all right now, at least not any that are consistently present.

Ah, thank you for sharing with us about how these dynamics are taking place in Wisconsin. How long have these NWRs been without (or with little) management personnel? Also, if you don't mind my asking, remind me of the names of the two National Wildlife Refuges in Wisconsin with breeding colonies of Whooping crane (Grus americana)?

Also, pardon the slight digression, but how are the state wildlife management areas in Wisconsin being funded at the state level? Is their funding adequate? or still not to the levels needed?

 

[birdsandbats]

Ah, thank you for sharing with us about how these dynamics are taking place in Wisconsin. How long have these NWRs been without (or with little) management personnel? Also, if you don't mind my asking, remind me of the names of the two National Wildlife Refuges in Wisconsin with breeding colonies of Whooping crane (Grus americana)?

Also, pardon the slight digression, but how are the state wildlife management areas in Wisconsin being funded at the state level? Is their funding adequate? or still not to the levels needed?

The two that have Whooping Cranes are Horicon NWR and Necedah NWR. In addition to the Whoopers, Necedah also has over 50% of the global population of the federally endangered Karner Blue.

A few years ago (I don't remember the exact time, I want to say 2016ish?) the management staff of all the NWRs in the state except that one were laid off, and the staff of Horicon and Necedah were assigned to them as well. Because of the already large workload of those two sites, this means those smaller, less important for Endangered species NWRs don't really have any more management that occasional checkups. Many are multi-hour drives from the larger refuges and probably get checked up-upon only rarely (some of them are islands in Lake Michigan that require significant boat rides to access, too, I can only imagine how long it's been since the staff have checked up on those).

Wisconsin's SWAs are funded very well. Hunting is huge in Wisconsin, so it pays for their management easily. They are mostly fairly well-managed (invasive species run rampant in them all sadly but that's somewhat unavoidable). Most are managed with only hunting in mind, public access for recreation is allowed but generally difficult, most have few to no roads (although the ones that do have roads have them maintained well year-round, thankfully). A few do have more of a recreation focus, with extensive trail systems and visitor centers. In a perfect world there would be more funding going to the management of these lands but as is it's about as it could reasonably be hoped to be.

 

[Pantheraman]

The two that have Whooping Cranes are Horicon NWR and Necedah NWR. In addition to the Whoopers, Necedah also has over 50% of the global population of the federally endangered Karner Blue.

A few years ago (I don't remember the exact time, I want to say 2016ish?) the management staff of all the NWRs in the state except that one were laid off, and the staff of Horicon and Necedah were assigned to them as well. Because of the already large workload of those two sites, this means those smaller, less important for Endangered species NWRs don't really have any more management that occasional checkups. Many are multi-hour drives from the larger refuges and probably get checked up-upon only rarely (some of them are islands in Lake Michigan that require significant boat rides to access, too, I can only imagine how long it's been since the staff have checked up on those).

Wisconsin's SWAs are funded very well. Hunting is huge in Wisconsin, so it pays for their management easily. They are mostly fairly well-managed (invasive species run rampant in them all sadly but that's somewhat unavoidable). Most are managed with only hunting in mind, public access for recreation is allowed but generally difficult, most have few to no roads (although the ones that do have roads have them maintained well year-round, thankfully). A few do have more of a recreation focus, with extensive trail systems and visitor centers. In a perfect world there would be more funding going to the management of these lands but as is it's about as it could reasonably be hoped to be.

At this point, I'm not even surprised the areas managed for hunting are better managed than the NWRs.