Vanishing arctic sea ice could make polar bears the first high-profile casualty of global warming. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering a proposal to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, which would be a first step towards protecting the bears’ habitat. But the proposal falls short in that it does not list any habitat as “critical” for the bears, and it does not list climate change as a specific threat. Either of these amendments could allow swifter action and more stringent regulation to help ensure the polar bears’ future.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is collecting public comments on the proposal until April 9, and the Natural Resources Defense Council has set up a web site to make participation quick and easy. They have set the ambitious target of collecting half a million comments in by the April 9 deadline. Concerned citizens can visit Polar Bear SOS and click “Take Action” to submit their views on the proposal.
