On November 13, 2008, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced their first revision to the Wilderness Stewardship Policy since the original policy was issued in 1986. According to the Service, the policy (which can be viewed online) was issued without a chance for public comment and includes the following provisions:

• The policy affirms that the Refuge System generally will not modify ecosystems, such as creating new impoundments, species population levels or natural processes in refuge wilderness unless doing so maintains or restores biological integrity, diversity or environmental health that has been degraded or is necessary to protect or recover threatened or endangered species.
• The policy guides the determination of whether a proposed refuge management activity, such as protecting habitat for a threatened or endangered species, constitutes the minimum requirement for managing a refuge as wilderness.
• The policy permits appropriate recreational uses in wilderness areas in accordance with the Refuge Improvement Act, if such wildlife-dependent recreation (hunting, fishing, wildlife observation and photography, environmental education and interpretation) is non-motorized, non-mechanized and compatible with the refuge purpose and mission.
• The policy describes the process that the Refuge System follows in conducting wilderness reviews in accordance with the refuge planning process as outlined in the planning policy.
• The policy addresses special provisions of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act for wilderness stewardship in Alaska.

Making first-time revisions to such a policy this late in the Bush administration’s existence naturally raises some major red flags with refuge advocates — especially since the media has been publishing reports about how the Bush appointees are rushing to make last-minute regulation changes before they lose power and before a greener Democratic Party takes control of the White House.

So on November 14, The Wilderness Society raised some of their own red flags about this wilderness policy announcement:

The Wilderness Society (TWS) today criticized the Bush Administration for its hasty release of a flawed new U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wilderness stewardship policy for the National Wildlife Refuge System. Major deficiencies of the new policy, issued yesterday, are that it fails to take into account the issue of climate change in managing the 21 million acres of designated Wilderness within the nation’s 540 wildlife refuges, and that it exempts all refuge lands in Alaska from requirements for wilderness reviews. In addition, the policy was released without any opportunity for public comment — a serious problem given the document’s other shortcomings.

“National wildlifer refuges all over the country, but especially those in Alaska, are critically important as we look at the impacts of climate change on our public lands,” said Maribeth Oakes, Refuge Program Manager at TWS. “It is outrageous that there is nothing in the new policy about managing refuge Wilderness to protect habitat, species, and migration corridors in a time of climate change. This is a serious omission when Refuge System lands will be among the first to be impacted by the temperature changes associated with global warming.”

TWS also expressed strong concern that Alaska’s refuges, which make up the bulk of the National Wildlife Refuge System’s overall acreage and contain the most designated Wilderness, are not subject to wilderness review under the new plan. “More than 80 percent of America’s refuge lands are in Alaska, and if you take them off the table, then you’ve turned your back on a significant portion of the refuge system,” Oakes noted. “Wilderness reviews are a necessary step for future Wilderness designation, and protecting wilderness is critical in managing our public lands in a changing climate. By shutting down future wilderness reviews on all refuge lands in Alaska, where global warming already is having a major impact, the Bush Administration has effectively closed the door on a vitally important management tool.”

The new policy — the first revision of this major policy document since it was originally issued in 1986 — will provide guidance for refuge staff on how to manage Wilderness lands within the Refuge System. A Clinton Administration draft of a revised wilderness stewardship policy was published in 2001, and received more than 4,000 public comments, but the USFWS was unable to finalize the policy before President Bush was elected.

“This is the policy that will govern Wilderness management decisions for many years — decisions that are critical to visitor experience, wildlife habitat, and the protection of these lands as an enduring resource,” said Maribeth Oakes, Refuge Program Manager for TWS. “It is ironic that, just as more people are engaging in the political process and demanding more openness from their government, the Bush Administration has once again resorted to making policy behind closed doors. The release of this document without an opportunity for public comment is a disservice not only to the Wilderness lands already protected within the National Wildlife Refuge system, but also to potential future designated Wilderness.”

We can likely expect more “midnight regulations” before the Bush administration leaves the White House for good. We’ll be keeping an eye out to see how many of them affect the Refuge System.

Tags:
wildlife, National Wildlife Refuge System, Wilderness Stewardship Policy, Bush Administration