Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge

As decades continued to pass by the wetlands change. "People have begun to realize that wetlands are valuable and productive ecosystems that fulfill an essential function for both humans and wildlife. Due to their unique characteristics, wetlands can support a wide diversity of plants, mammals, reptiles, birds and fish. They also control floodwaters and protect us from storms and hurricanes. Wetlands also improve water quality by filtering, cleaning and storing water. Lastly, many people rely on wetlands for their livelihood, as they are important centers for hunting, fishing and recreation." Referring to this from "Wetlands and Habitat Loss", we now see how wetlands are valuable and helpful to the ecosystem. The wetlands are known for our water source. Many people depend on the Everglades for a water source. We also use the Everglades for activities. These activities include fishing, recreation, and

Giving full credit to restricting the Mississippi River as the culprit for loss of wetlands is not accurate. The booming oil and gas exploration of the 1970’s and 1980’s merits a name on the marquee as well. The pipelines and canals used to transport the resources to the outside world placed a great deal of stress on the fragile wetlands. Erosion from the barges in and out of the marshes as well as the salt water allowed into the fresh water, providing a precarious habitat for fresh water species – flora and fauna alike. Plants provide root systems to hold soil in place. Fish and fowl provide an economy for the area. Enter

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) has been the center of a strident controversy and national debate that has raged for over 40 years. The question raising so much contention is whether the federal government should allow drilling for oil and natural gas with the levels of contention paralleling the rise and fall of gas prices. The National Democratic and Republican Parties have taken opposing positions in their national political platforms, with the debate emerging and re-emerging in Congress as a significant issue. The Republican are proponents of drilling whereas the Democrats are opposed. With Sen. Lisa Murkowski ascending to the top post of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee many observers believe that the Republicans will renew their push for drilling in the ANWR in the upcoming 114th Congress. This paper will explore the different arguments that are used to oppose drilling to protect the ANWR followed by arguments that are in support of drilling. As a result of a preliminary review of current literature outlining the pros and cons surrounding drilling, it is the thesis of this paper that drilling in the ANWR is unnecessary based on (1) the potential to cause irreversible damage to a very unique ecosystem that has not been adequately studied by scientists; and (2) the limited impact that drilling in the region will have on overall market prices and supplies due to the estimated small size of the ANWR’s oil and gas reserves. A brief history of the

The restoration of grasslands and forests is extremely important when it comes to breeding grounds for ducks. Dabbling Ducks use the tall grass found around ponds or in marshes to build nest and raise their young. Diving Ducks will flock to flooded forest areas and build a nest inside the holes of a tree and they will raise their young from above the ground. In recent years these habitats have been reduced significantly for farming and other purposes. In order to restore these habitats Ducks Unlimited must first purchase the land from the landowner. After they have the rights to the property they will begin to make changes to the area so it can be a more suitable ecosystem for waterfowl. When restoring grasslands Ducks Unlimited will replant the local grasses and dig ponds in the area, these actions will help hatchlings survive to adulthood. After these properties have been restored Ducks Unlimited will donate the land to government agencies that

Mesa Verde National Park, located in Montezuma County, Colorado, was established in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt. This United States landmark was designated for the preservation of several Puebloan archeological sites and the vast geologic history exhibited within the 52,485 acres of land occupied by Mesa Verde. The Ancestral Puebloans, or Mesa Verdeans, associated with the archeological sites of Mesa Verde National Park, lived in the Mesa Verde region from the mid-sixth century to the end of the thirteenth century.[3]

Near the small town of San Antonio, NM is a spectacular display of one of nature's finest balanced beauty and wilderness paradise, Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, situated on the northern edge of the Chihuahuan desert and straddling the Rio Grande. Fitting is the name Bosque del Apache, meaning "woods of the Apache," a reminder of the Apache peoples of long ago who lived along the Rio Grande. The 57,331-acre refuge was established in 1939 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, an effort aimed to preserve the area as a wildlife habitat. The nucleus of the refuge is 7,000 acres of flood-plain, an extensive area of wetlands and farmlands. Arid foothills and towering mesas ascend to the Chupadera Mountains

While these events happened in our area more headline news caught the eye of South Dakota citizens. Senator Tom Daschle proposed a bill that had the potential to lead to the development of more wetlands in South Dakota. The bill offered tax credits to farmers who preserved wetlands not enrolled in the Conservation reserve program or wetland reserve program (Olson). With the Winter of 1997-1998 being so short schools, banks, city crews, and churches were able to catch up on their budgets. Schools didn 't have to call off any days, city crews

The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is the primary agency that works to conserve, protect, and enhance the nation's fish and wildlife by providing sustainable healthy environments for future generations. It is through these three basic principles of ‘conserve, protect and enhance’ the USFWS is able to bring programs that both directly affect the health and well-being of migratory birds, fish and endangered species. In most cases it is through habitat protection that enables the USFWS to carry out these three principles. The Small Wetlands Program (SWP) is one such program that the USFWS utilizes to maintain the health of migratory birds in the United States.

Louisiana’s Gulf Coast is eroding into the sea, and by 2100 most of Southeast Louisiana could be completely underwater. Not only does this threaten human and animal habitats, but also the energy, shipping, fishing, and tourist industries that have made this region of the U.S. a valuable part of the national economy (Marshall, 2014). In the past 200 years, half of the nation’s wetland habitats have been lost due to natural and manmade processes. Louisiana’s wetlands make up 40 percent of the total wetlands in the continental United States. 80 percent of losses, nationally, are of Louisiana’s coast (Williams).

Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the crowned jewel of the nation’s 544 refuges is in danger of destruction (Lamar and Markey 12). ANWR has been in existence since 1960 and has slowly become one of the most controversial topics to hit Congress. ANWR is composed of 19 million acres on the northeast coast of Alaska. Although the government has been provided with this immense land they are fighting to gain more land. Why? ANWR is the second biggest oil field that is owned by the U.S. Now the government wants more land to construct oil reserves. The refuge is home to many endangered species such as migratory birds, polar bears, and wolves (Lynne and Roberts 1). Most of ANWR’s designated oil area is owned by indigenous Alaskan

In the Lake of the Woods is about ghosts, personal and national, and about the impossibility of escaping them. Author Tim O’Brien poured much of his own likeness into protagonist John Wade. Wade grew up in Minnesota and like O’Brien, he served in Vietnam so he could maintain or get more love from his peers and family. Like O’Brien, he likely committed some wartime sins and like O’Brien, he cannot escape the past. However we see a key difference between the two mean as O’Brien confronts his personal demons through writing and admitting publicly his faults, while Wade prefers to suppress the past and at making all disagreeable memories disappear.

Both my spouses and my families have been practicing agriculture for years. This has introduced me to many of the programs that the Farm Services Agency has to offer. On my mother’s side, they have participated in the CRP Highly Erodible Lands Initiative program. By enrolling in the CRP program, ground they farm in the hills has benefited by increasing the water quality to intermittent streams below and provided habitat for deer, turkeys, and other local wildlife. Their farm located near the Missouri River has some farmers enrolled in the Flood Plain Wetlands initiative in order to combat loss of crops from flooding. It offers waterfowl habitat and minimizes risk in planting crops that flood from year to year. My father-in-law has been enrolled in the SAFE program and he is trying to re-habilitate habitats for prairie chickens. In western Kansas there are wildlife guzzlers on some of the land enrolled in

King Range National Conservation Area is a 42,695-acre mountain range running along the coast of California. King Range is a very popular destination for people who have all sorts of interests. Starting in 2006 (when King Range Wilderness became an official wilderness area), campers, hunters, and hikers would come to visit the diverse area in search of a peaceful and relaxing time. The coast also attracts surfers, swimmers, beach combers and backpackers.

The Jean Lafitte National Park established in 1907 is located in the Mississippi Delta which is mainly swampland. There are approximately six sites that are spread out throughout south Louisiana. The six sites are Barataria Preserve, Acadian Cultural Center, Chalmette Battlefield and Cemetery, Prairie Acadian Cultural Center, Park Headquarters located in New Orleans. The preserve in Barataria is about 23,00 acres of wetlands that include bayous, swamps and marsh areas. The Prairie Acadian Center features the lives of Acadians or Cajuns as we call them today who roamed the bayous fished and trapped animals as a way of life. The Chalmette National Battlefield is located on the banks of the Mississippi River which was the location of the war

Numberless amounts of waterfowl, birds, and countless species that call Louisiana home are now being terrorized thanks to non-native species, humans and a numerous amount of different causes. The Brown Pelican, Louisiana’s state bird, has been endangered until 1995, and about half of all the geese in North America spend the winter in the coastal marshes (Elliott, Charles). Additionally, Louisiana is the leading state for the number of wintering ducks (¨SGP¨). The marshes are extremely important to the fowl that live there year round and for the ones that do not. The Bobwhite Quail, that live there year round, have suffered huge losses to their population. From 1966 they have declined 75%, primarily due to habitat degradation (¨SGP¨). One of the reasons populations of fowl have been going down is the result of invasive species. The common