Statement of the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace, and Natural Resources Defense Council on Bush Administration’s Request for Further Delay in Protecting Polar Bears From Global Warming

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 17, 2008
6:33 PM

 CONTACT: Center for Biological Diversity / Greenpeace / NRDC
Kassie Siegel, Center for Biological Diversity, (760) 366-2232 x 302 or cell, (951) 961-7972, ksiegel@biologicaldiversity.org
Andrew Wetzler, NRDC, (614) 840-0891 or cell, (312) 823-4241, awetzler@nrdc.org
Jane Kochersperger, Greenpeace, (202) 319-2493 or cell, (202) 680-3798
 
 
Statement of the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace, and Natural Resources Defense Council on Bush Administration’s Request for Further Delay in Protecting Polar Bears From Global Warming
 
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – April 17 – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, responding to a court motion filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace, and the Natural Resources Defense Council, admitted in court papers it filed today that it is violating the law by delaying protection to polar bears and asked the court to allow it to delay still further, until June 30, 2008.


Statement of Kassie Siegel, climate program director at the Center for Biological Diversity and lead author of the 2005 petition to list the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act:

“Polar bears need our help now, not whenever the Bush administration feels like getting around to it. The administration will do nothing to protect polar bears and nothing about global warming until ordered to do so by a federal judge. That’s why we’ve moved this case as quickly could possibly be done under the rules of court.”

Statement of Andrew Wetzler, director, NRDC Endangered Species Project:

“The Endangered Species Act is absolutely unambiguous: the Fish and Wildlife Service was required to make a final decision months ago. The scientific evidence is as overwhelming and undeniable — polar bears are an endangered species that ought to be protected by the Endangered Species Act.”

Statement of Melanie Duchin, global warming campaigner at Greenpeace USA:

“If the government truly were serious about protecting the polar bear, then the Fish and Wildlife Service would list it immediately under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and protect its Arctic habitat from further oil development.”

A court hearing will be held at 2:00 pm on May 8, 2008, in U.S. District Court in Oakland, California, before the Honorable Judge Claudia Wilkin.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a nonprofit conservation organization with more than 40,000 members dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. www.biologicaldiversity.org

Greenpeace is an independent campaigning organization with 2.7 million members worldwide that uses peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions for the future. www.greenpeace.org

The Natural Resources Defense Council is a national, nonprofit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has 1.2 million members and online activists, served from offices in New York, Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Beijing. www.nrdc.org 

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