A "National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants. Since President Theodore Roosevelt designated Florida's Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge as the first wildlife refuge in 1903, the System has grown to over 560 national wildlife refuges and other units of the Refuge System, plus 38 wetland management districts encompassing more than 150,000,000 acres (607,028 km2)." according to wiki. Sounds like a lot, doesn't it?
I am one of those people who, when seeing this designation on my road map as we travel, get all excited about the possibility to visit. I know intellectually it is not as pristine as my inner vision hopes. Sometimes it is smaller than we wanted. Other times it is pretty inaccessible and I accept that. I do sense that there are thousands of creatures and plants being left alone to blunder along in their lives through drought, flood, fire and storm and mankind's ever-reaching pollution. The area is called a sanctuary...a refuge and that is the mission..
"National Wildlife Refuges manage a full range of habitat types, including wetlands; prairies; coastal and marine areas; and temperate, tundra and boreal forests. The management of each habitat is a complex web of controlling or eradicating invasive species, using fire in a prescribed manner, assuring adequate water resources, and assessing external threats like development or contamination."
Does mankind do this successfully? No, of course not. We do not play God very well at all, but we keep trying. 60 refuges exist primarily to protect endangered species. Some of these refuges provide fishing and hunting opportunities to sportsman who cannot afford a refuge of their own.
The National Wildlife Refuge System must work with issues like urban intrusion/development, habitat fragmentation, degradation of water quantity and quality, climate change, invasive species, increasing demands for recreation, and increasing demands for energy development.
But the worst and most dangerous threats are people like the Bundys and other "hardcore militia men" (one wonders why they are not fighting for their country overseas) who think they own the earth and can take it from the rest of us to use as they wish.
It's part of their religion. They think God gave them dominion to do whatever they wish. And it doesn't matter because He is going to make a new heaven and earth. Sigh.
ReplyDeletewhat Anvilcloud said. only I imagine when their god said protect the earth and all in it, they heard 'use' the earth and all in it. when your god is separate from creation, this is the result.
ReplyDeleteas for these cowards, what on earth has happened to the people in this country that it has produced so many of them.
The previous two comments are profound. I agree.
ReplyDeleteUntil your mention of the Bundys and the militia, my comment was going to head in another direction. Our yard is a registered with the Backyard Wildlife Habitat Program with the National Wildlife Federation and with the State of Washington as a Backyard Wildlife Sanctuary. We try to be earth friendly.
I am hoping that a god that would give dominion over the earth to the sad likes of the Bundys is now seriously reconsidering that decision.
ReplyDeleteAh, a sane voice in the wilderness!
ReplyDeleteI tried taking 2 days at a time but, it takes way too much coffee and organization.
ReplyDeleteThe Bundy bunch are paper tigers.
ReplyDeleteThey are consummate bullies. The kids who snatched other kids' lunch money. I hope no one gets killed but they need to get slapped back.
ReplyDeleteThe word translated "dominion" really means caretaking. It's a shame they don't study what they claim to believe.
ReplyDeleteUh oh, I guess I'm ignorant. Who are the Bundys? But obviously, I agree with the sentiment of your last paragraph.
ReplyDeleteI am so grateful for those who had the foresight to set aside and fight to protect different regions of our land. It's unfortunate that it's necessary, of course. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever been to the turtle sanctuary in California that has fences over 8 feet high to protect the turtles? I know it is to keep people out but it is funny to think they are trying to keep the turtles in.
ReplyDeleteThe Bundys are crazy and need to get the hell out of my state. Malheur Wildlife Refuge was put in place over a hundred years ago, and there is no way these morons can overturn it.
ReplyDeleteI usually don't respond to this sort of thing, neither do I wish to try to change the minds of the other commenters... Though I am not fond of the Bundys tactics,
ReplyDeleteI do know what it is like to try to ranch in the West, to uphold our family traditions as good Americans, to be good stewards of the land that provides our livelihood. There are a lot of good people here.
Choose your words of scorn wisely,
encase you have to eat them later...
If anyone is interested... this is worth reading: http://www.dandagget.com/protecting-the-west-from-its-protectors/
ReplyDeleteI have a friend/relative via marriage, who has since passed on, who has written a number of famous books about the west and water wars and I think the blog above is a good example but oversimplifies the reasons. I think this is more about climate change, long term drought, mankind redirecting, using and taking the water, and "benign" protection where the DNR and other departments have had budget cuts along with a changing role of being more a policeman than a ranger and as a result being able to do far less in terms of protecting the land. It all combines to hurt the west. Certainly grazing when done in moderation is not a totally bad approach, but breaking the law and making a communities lives miserable is not right either.
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