The Conservation Column By Pepper Trail Alaska’s Bristol Bay Threatened by Mine Bristol Bay is the huge bay lying just north of the long arc of the Aleutians. It is an area of incredible natural abundance, both in the marine and terrestrial environments, as recognized with 27 globally-significant Important Bird Areas, two National Parks, four [...]
The Conservation Column By Juliet Grable The Cormorants of East Sand Island In April, Portland Audubon and the Center for Biological Diversity announced the release of a film called Scapegoat: The Cormorants of East Sand Island, by Portland filmmaker Trip Jennings. The film documents the Army Corps of Engineers’ war on the world’s largest Double-crested [...]
The Conservation Column by Pepper Trail This month the Conservation Column will leave the Rogue Valley to focus on an issue of great importance for bird conservation in eastern Oregon. This concerns the future of Lake Abert, a saline lake in the remote high desert northeast of Lakeview. The lake is a fall migratory stopover [...]
The Conservation Column By Juliet Grable Conservation Victory: Oregon Commission Uplists Marbled Murrelet to Endangered On February 9, 2018, I attended a public hearing in Portland, during which the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission (OFWC) voted to approve a petition to uplist the Marbled Murrelet from Threat-ened to Endangered under the Oregon Endangered Species Act [...]
The state's Fish and Wildlife Commission voted Friday (2/9) to reclassify the seabird as endangered after a marathon daylong meeting in Portland at which our own Juliet Grable testified. More details on the meeting and actions taken therein can be found in this Oregon Live article.
As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) this year, our core bird protection law is facing its most serious threat in a century of existence. Last month, the Trump administration released a legal opinion that it now interprets MBTA to only cover hunting and will no longer enforce incidental [...]
The Conservation Column By Pepper Trail The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) is the world’s most comprehensive law protecting birds. Enacted in 1918 and revised several times since, it covers all North American native bird species with the exception of upland game birds (turkeys, grouse, and quail), making it illegal for anyone to [...]
The October 2017 Conservation Column by Pepper Trail We Learn a Little More about the Trump Administration’s Monument Plans On Sept. 17, the Washington Post published a leaked copy of the text of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s “Final Report Summarizing Findings of the Review of Designations Under the Antiquities Act.” This was provided to the [...]
The Fate of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument This month’s Chat is coming out a few days late because we wanted to wait for the announcement regarding the results of the Trump Administration’s review of national monuments designated under the Antiquities Act – including, of course, our own Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument. The recommendations from Interior Secretary [...]
A request from the Oregon Conservation Network Director and the Rogue Valley Audubon Conservation Committee We need our legislators to pass bonding on the Elliott State Forest. And we only have 18 days left. Tell your legislator you support bonding for the Elliott! In May, the State Land Board – Governor Brown, Treasurer Read, Secretary Richardson [...]
