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2020.03.24 - Alligator - Okefenokee Swamp - Okefenokee Wilderness Area - Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge - Michael Lusk.jpg
ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Defenders Celebrates Land Acquisition Deal Protecting Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge from Threat of Mining

Defenders of Wildlife celebrates The Conservation Fund’s acquisition of the properties owned by Twin Pines Minerals, LLC, a company seeking to mine adjacent to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, the largest refuge east of the Mississippi River.
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Andre Johnson / iStock Photo
Washington, DC

Communities Push Back on Opening Waters for Oil Drilling

Defenders of Wildlife filed comments this week opposing new offshore oil drilling. More than 44 thousand public comments were submitted to the first comment period
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US Capitol Building Washington DC
Washington, D.C.

Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Sells Out Wildlife Along with American Lands and Waters

Defenders of Wildlife strongly condemns the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee for selling out wildlife in its text for the upcoming budget reconciliation bill.

Press Releases

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Sage grouse
Washington, DC

Trump Administration Papers over Sage-Grouse Plans

Today, the Trump administration published supplemental environmental analyses as a band-aid to previously-issued environmental impact statements found deficient by a federal judge.
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Bay-Delta
BAKERSFIELD, Calif.

Trump Administration Finalizes Decision to Undermine ESA Protections for Bay Delta Fish

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation issued a Record of Decision that will finalize environmentally destructive water project operations for the Central Valley Project, including substantial increases in the amount of water that can be diverted from the San Francisco Bay Delta.
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Salmon
Salem, OR

Oregon Governor Kate Brown Says Restoring the Snake River Must be Part of Plan to Save Salmon and Orcas

Late last week, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown sent a letter to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee supporting the restoration of the Snake River, saying that removing the four federal dams on the lower portion of the waterway must be part of a comprehensive plan to save endangered salmon, steelhead and orcas.
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Jaguar

Greater Protections Proposed for Jaguars, Sharks at International Wildlife Convention

This week, representatives from 130 countries are gathered at the meeting of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP13) in Gandhinagar, India.
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Polar bears Arctic
Washington, DC

Oil and Polar Bears Don’t Mix: Trump Administration Asks Public to Review Peer-reviewed Polar Bear Study

On Tuesday, February 18, the Trump administration will open an unprecedented 60-day comment period asking the public to comment on a study authored by its own scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) entitled “Seismic survey design and potential impacts to maternal polar bear dens.” The study is intended to support decision making on potential fossil fuel development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, though such research is not typically offered for public comment.
Senior Vice President, External Affairs
lsheehan@defenders.org
(202) 772-3244
Communications Director
mdewane@defenders.org
(202) 772-0217
Communications Specialist
jcovey@defenders.org
Communications Specialist
jpetrequin@defenders.org
(202) 772-0243
Communications Specialist
zklein@defenders.org
(202) 772-3268