Government and Biodiversity

Government Role in Biodiversity A growing issue in today’s world is the role of government in biodiversity. Biodiversity, the relationships between all living things, could be the most delicate natural resource that we have. As with many controversial topics, there are arguments for more, less and satisfactory involvement. The specific aspect of this issue that will be addressed is the role that the government plays in controlling big game populations, particularly deer, bear and wolf. The control methods evaluated will include hunting, the Endangered Species Act, and regulating urban sprawl. The first technique to review is hunting. A 2006 survey estimated that 10.7 million hunters pursued big game ("Hunting statistics and," 2008). The United States Fish and Wildlife Service recognizes that hunting is an important tool for wildlife management (“Hunting,” 2010). Regulations on this measure have been used to control the deer population by providing bonus tags, intensive harvest tags, and a lottery for antler-less deer. Additionally, multiple seasons are available for different modes of hunting including archery, firearm and muzzleloader. “Harvest limits can change dramatically from one area to another depending on management goals”(“Hunters in northeastern,” 2012). The newest hunting season created is for the wolf population. There has been a lot of negative concern expressed towards this event. The wolf season will be the first ever held in Minnesota, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has set very specific guidelines for the inaugural season, including limiting the total harvest to 400 animals as well as requiring hunters to have a current hunting license for a different animal (“Dnr outlines wolf, 2012). The bear and wolf populations are controlled through a lottery application process which allows for a total number taken that will not be detrimental to the overall population. The best way to make hunting a beneficial system to population control is through education. There are many educational efforts in place for hunters, with the first stop that all shooters must make is in a firearm safety class. While the primary focus of such a class is obviously on the safe handling of a gun, there are other topics addressed, including respect for wildlife and landowners. I think that further education should at the very least be offered to hunters, if not required for certain hunting situations. I would like to see a situation where those selected for the wolf lottery, must complete an extra education process before they take a wolf. It could be something as simple as watching an online video and taking a short quiz or having to attend a class for a few hours, but do something that can be documented. I think it would be wise to establish a similar education process for bear hunters. In both the wolf and bear situations, it might be more cost effective to allow the hunters to do the education online and only require a certification every 3 to 5 years. The environmental movement over the past fifty years has forced us to “think and legislate beyond species” (Vallaint, 2003 p. 122). The next course of action that has been implemented by the government is the Endangered Species Act. This piece of policy was passed in 1973 and has had multiple revisions. It is considered to be the most far reaching environmental law ever adopted by a nation (Miller, 2007 p. 142). The law was written to both identify and protect species on a global level. There are some people that feel that the ESA has not been effective because only 37 species have been removed from the endangered species list (Miller, 2007 p. 144). However, when the following things are considered, a species is only on the list if it is in danger of becoming extinct, it can take years for a population to decline and therefore years to recover, and that nearly all of the species are still at the very least surviving if not experiencing population growth, the ESA is accomplishing the intended goal (Miller, 2007 p.144). The most recent species to be removed from the list was the grey wolf. With such seemingly positive results, it is hard to argue that the ESA has been ineffective. Here again, there is so much to be gained through education and simple public awareness. So many people go through their day to day with blinders on to the world around them. There have been several public service announcement placements on television recently, specifically regarding the effects of bottled water on the environment. While I personally am not a huge fan of social media, it is the perfect place to spread a message quickly and often. Finally, there is the subject of urban sprawl and its effect on wildlife populations. “Urban sprawl is the result of ample and affordable land, automobiles, cheap gasoline, and poor urban planning” (Miller, 2007 p. 98). The overall idea of this phenomenon is that people move or sprawl outwards from an urban area to a more desirable suburban area. This process displaces wildlife, adds to pollution due to increased traffic from commuters, and has an adverse affect on the local climate. Many species have however been able to adapt to their new human neighbors, raccoons forage through trash cans, deer graze in backyards, and bears have been known to seek out pet food after hibernation. These encounters with wildlife can cause a lot of undue stress as well as be quite dangerous for human and animal alike. For instance, there is the potential to contract a communicable disease, such as rabies. Of course, we have had disease issues with domesticated herds as well, like the Swine Flu or Mad Cow Disease. There is also an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents, many animals will follow roads because instincts lead them down the path of least resistance. The damage inflicted, including totaled vehicles, injuries to humans and animals as well as the fatalities to both humans and animals, due to these circumstances is sobering. Lastly, there is the possibility of being attacked. Often these attacks are seemingly unprovoked and are a result of one of two things. Either the animal has learned enough about its new environment and relied on humans to provide food from garbage cans, pet feeders, or even blatant feeding, this only encourages the animal to seek out humans as a food source, and when the food is not provided the animal attacks. The other scenario, is that a true predatory animal, due to lack of food sources will attack in an attempt to make the human its next meal. This has been known to happen with bobcats and mountain lions. Ultimately, the government has definitely made strides in correcting the unbalance in biodiversity. It speaks volumes, that a species was not only able to be removed from the endangered species list, but has increased its population enough that a hunting season has been created to assist in its management. There is still a long road ahead to achieve true biodiversity, it will be a global effort, one species at a time. I think that the common denominator that keeps surfacing on this topic is quite simply, education. The more education, the more awareness is created, and ultimately the situation begins to improve. Education is a tool that the government needs to use if we are to achieve biodiversity. I feel that we have an excellent start with the Endangered Species Act. I think that the government efforts to recover and preserve biodiversity are satisfactory, however there is always room for improvement, and I am open to the considerations of stronger efforts.

References
(2010, March 22). Hunting. Retrieved from http://www.fws.gov/hunting/

Dnr outlines wolf season details, seeks public comment. (2012, May 21). Retrieved from http://news.dnr.state.mn.us/2012/05/21/dnr-outlines-wolf-season-details-seeks-public-comment/

Hunters in northeastern minnesota urged to apply early for deer permits, wolf licenses. (2012, August 30). Retrieved from http://news.dnr.state.mn.us/2012/08/30/hunters-in-northeastern-minnesota-urged-to-apply-early-for-deer-permits-wolf-licenses/

Hunting statistics and economics. (2008, July 30). Retrieved from http://www.fws.gov/hunting/huntstat.html

Miller, G. T. (2007). Sustaining the earth. (8 ed.). Belmont: Thomson Brooks Cole.

Vallaint, J. (2003). Overkill. The Atlantic monthly, 291(3), 121. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rasmussen.edu/eds/detail?sid=8ca7c076-84f0-4a68-ae0b-d9353b77cd6c@sessionmgr15&vid=7&hid=103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU=

References: (2010, March 22). Hunting. Retrieved from http://www.fws.gov/hunting/ Dnr outlines wolf season details, seeks public comment. (2012, May 21). Retrieved from http://news.dnr.state.mn.us/2012/05/21/dnr-outlines-wolf-season-details-seeks-public-comment/ Hunters in northeastern minnesota urged to apply early for deer permits, wolf licenses. (2012, August 30). Retrieved from http://news.dnr.state.mn.us/2012/08/30/hunters-in-northeastern-minnesota-urged-to-apply-early-for-deer-permits-wolf-licenses/ Hunting statistics and economics. (2008, July 30). Retrieved from http://www.fws.gov/hunting/huntstat.html Miller, G. T. (2007). Sustaining the earth. (8 ed.). Belmont: Thomson Brooks Cole. Vallaint, J. (2003). Overkill. The Atlantic monthly, 291(3), 121. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rasmussen.edu/eds/detail?sid=8ca7c076-84f0-4a68-ae0b-d9353b77cd6c@sessionmgr15&vid=7&hid=103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU=