U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service “Strategic Plan” provides model for government response to climate change

Summary:

• The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today released its final “Strategic Plan for Responding to Accelerating Climate Change.”
• The Service’s “Strategic Plan” identifies the urgent need to develop a comprehensive national strategy to guide various agencies’ efforts to help wildlife adapt to the impacts of global warming already being experienced on the ground.
• The plan outlines the Service’s goal and objectives for addressing the challenge of global climate change and its impact on wildlife and natural resources, as well as its plans for mitigating effects of climate change and engaging the public on this important issue.

The following is a statement from Jamie Rappaport Clark, executive vice president of Defenders of Wildlife and former director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

“Climate change is altering our planet in ways we have never seen, and requires a fundamental shift in how we think and act to achieve conservation in the twenty-first century. The Fish and Wildlife Service’s Strategic Plan provides the necessary framework for changing the Service’s conservation approach, and sets an example for the rest of the federal government for confronting the challenges of climate change.

“The Service’s Strategic Plan is an essential first step and Defenders looks forward to working closely with the Service as it implements this plan. All federal agencies must incorporate measures to prevent and respond to climate change in their operations. Now, more than ever, we need a national strategy to guide and coordinate efforts to help wildlife and natural resources adapt to life in a warming world.”

Learn more about what Defenders is doing to fight climate change.

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