WASHINGTON – Jan. 7, 2010 – As the new year begins, waterfowlers are pursuing a top resolution for 2010: restore Clean Water Act protections to wetlands that are vital to keeping the skies filled with waterfowl.
Millions of wetlands used as prime breeding habitat in the Prairie Pothole Region could be threatened with drainage and destruction under regulatory guidance released in 2008. More than 20 million acres of marshes, wetlands and playa lakes across the country are at risk of being lost without action by Congress to restore protections to these areas.
"Waterfowlers could lose millions of birds a year if these breeding habitats are destroyed," said Dr. Scott Yaich, director of conservation operations for Ducks Unlimited. "This is a top priority for sportsmen in this Congress."
A bill to restore protections to wetlands, endorsed by sportsmen's groups, farmers, ranchers and clean water professionals, is awaiting debate on the Senate floor. Ducks Unlimited played a critical role in bringing diverse interests to the bargaining table to hammer out a compromise bill that protects wetlands as well as landowners' rights to work their land.
"Clean water and wetlands are important not just for hunters and anglers but for all of us," said Yaich. "Farmers and ranchers depend on adequate supplies of clean water for their crops and herds, and the wetlands that help provide it also provide waterfowl. Many landowners and farmers also depend upon upstream wetlands to help reduce flood damage to their croplands and other property."
Waterfowlers add over $2.3 billion to the U.S. economy every year, according to a study from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"Losing these wetlands could seriously hurt our waterfowling traditions and impact the rural communities that depend on waterfowl hunters as part of their economy," said Andrew Limmer, a duck hunter from Milwaukee, Wis. "As a sportsman who cares about the future of waterfowl hunting and the safety of our drinking water, I ask others like me to contact their members of Congress and urge them to restore protections to threatened wetlands."
Sportsmen and women can contact their members of Congress, and learn more about the threats to wetlands, at the Ducks Unlimited Clean Water Action Center.
Ducks Unlimited is the world's largest non-profit organization dedicated to conserving North America's continually disappearing waterfowl habitats. Established in 1937, Ducks Unlimited has conserved nearly 13 million acres thanks to contributions from more than a million supporters across the continent. Guided by science and dedicated to program efficiency, DU works toward the vision of wetlands sufficient to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow and forever.
Neil Shader
nshader@ducks.org
202.347.1530