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Washington, DC

BLM Prepares Illegal Move to Open Ouray National Wildlife Refuge to Oil & Gas, a Dangerous Precedent for Wildlife

Defenders of Wildlife is calling on BLM to withdrawal an unprecedented proposal to open Ouray National Wildlife Refuge in Utah to new oil and gas leasing.
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Jake Li Testimony at EPW
WASHINGTON, D.C.

A Much-Needed Win for Wildlife: Senate Introduces Bill to Improve Endangered Species Act Implementation

Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Pete Rickets (R-NE) today introduced the Improving Species Recovery Act, an important bipartisan bill that would improve implementation of the Endangered Species Act.
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Porcupine caribou making its way through deep snow on the East Fork of the Chandalar River
WASHINGTON, D.C.

Enough is Enough: Senate Blocks Yet Another Attempt to Prioritize Drilling in the Arctic

The Senate today blocked an attempt to pass S. 5438, introduced by Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK). The bill would have ratified and approved all authorizations, permits, verifications, extensions, biological opinions, incidental take statements and any other approvals or orders issued pursuant to federal law necessary for the establishment and administration of the Coastal Plain oil and gas leasing program, among other purposes.

Press Releases

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Red knots and horseshoe crabs
Charleston, S.C.

Limits on Horseshoe Crab Harvest Protect Threatened Shorebirds

Yesterday, the Southern Environmental Law Center, on behalf of Defenders of Wildlife and the Coastal Conservation League, obtained a major win for threatened red knots just as they come to South Carolina to feed on newly spawned horseshoe crab eggs.
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Willow Project
Anchorage, AK

Federal Judge Allows Construction to Proceed in ConocoPhillips’ Willow Project in Alaska

A federal judge today ruled in favor of oil giant ConocoPhillips by denying a motion for preliminary injunction brought by Defenders of Wildlife (represented by Earthjustice) and other environmental organizations as part of a lawsuit challenging the Willow project in Alaska’s Western Arctic.
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sage grouse
Washington, DC

New Agency Public Lands Rule Addresses Sustainability and Climate Change

Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the federal agency that manages one in 10 acres of land in the U.S., issued a draft rule intended to modernize the agency’s tools and strategies for managing these vast lands.
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Black and white image of a grizzly bear
Washington, DC

Pro-Extinction Lawmakers in House Launch New Attack on the Endangered Species Act

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries began their first hearings on three bills that would drastically undermine the U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) and efforts to combat the dire climate change and biodiversity crises. The bills under consideration are among the 13 anti-ESA bills that have already been introduced in the House this Congress.
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Peregrine Falcon
Washington, DC

Defenders Applauds Creation of Castner Range National Monument in Texas

Defenders of Wildlife praised President Biden for establishing Castner Range National Monument in El Paso, Texas.
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
kirby@defenders.org
(202) 772-3268
Communications Specialist
estern@defenders.org
202-772-0243