Polar Bears - Some Bad News, Some Good News
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There’s been some bad news and a little good news for polar bears in the last few days.
BAD NEWS:
1. The Department of the Interior still hasn’t decided on listing polar bears as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). They’ve been dragging their feet, which made possible the sale of oil and gas drilling in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska’s coast.
2. On Monday, Interior announced the award of $2.6 billion in winning bids from companies seeking to do oil and gas drilling. Because the decision to make polar bears threatened was not passed before these awards, the companies will not have to take special precautions to ensure the saftety and health of the polar bear population in the Chukchi Sea.
THE GOOD NEWS
1. Manitoba, which already had a hunting ban on polar bears, has just announced special protection for polar bears under the Province’s Endangered Species Act. It includes restrictions of how close people can come to female bears and their cubs along the Hudson Bay coast.
This special protection will also restrict how close tour operators can encroach on polar bear dens along the coast from Ontario to Nunavut, which is a prime location for denning polar bear mothers. For more information, click Manitoba protects polar bears.
Don’t Worry, They Can’t Come Any Closer.
2. Out of over 1/4 million Squidoo lenses, Are You Polar Bear Aware? was awarded 2nd Runner Up for Lens of the Year, 2007. The competition was fierce. The other 10 lenses nominated for Lens of the Year are wonderful and I was honored to be included among them. If you love polar bears, and want to learn more about them or see great pictures, check out the site at Award Winning Polar Bear Site.
Below is a brief video I created to let people know about the site. I hope you like it. If you do, tell a friend.
Bear hugs, Frankie
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P.P.S. For teddy bears and other stuffed animals, click on the picture.
P.P.P.S. If you want to know what you can do to protect polar bears and other endangered species, contact The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) at National Wildlife Federation (NWF)
