Our Conversation Affairs Committee is one way that we reach out to members, the public, and lawmakers to promote our mission.

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When our National organization asked for our top 3 priorities for 2019-2020, we narrowed it down to these points:

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• Protect the Endangered Species Act (ESA)

  • Operate the ESA within a pragmatic framework under codified law

  • Economics must to take a back seat or it becomes political

  • Guided by science only with a disciplined rigorous process

  • Maintain habitat protections for population growth and expansion

 

• Protect Environmental Laws and Processes in All Agencies

  • Related to a 2017 top-down issuance of a rule to USFWS regulators that has meant to limit various environmental docs to 150 pages and one-year time limit for preparation, which severely limits amount of data and scientific analysis info that can be presented in those docs and thoroughly discussed 

  • Do away with new, politically motivated restrictions on length of docs and duration of preparation periods, because they are likely aimed to tie the hands of regulatory process in national natural resource management efforts

 

• Intelligent Border Security with No Border Wall, Stop Further Border Wall Building

  • Protect the delicate desert ecosystems from further habitat destruction, fragmentation and connectivity loss

  • Species affected by further border militarization including, but not limited to: jaguar, ocelot, cactus ferruginous pygmy owl, Mexican gray wolf, pronghorn, Chiricahua leopard frog, and bison 

  • It’s more than a wall – roads, access roads, helipads, forward operating bases, bright lights, sirens – all are environmental impacts

  • Develop/Use intelligent new technology (e.g. drones) to monitor the border

  • Find a way to prevent the 2005 REAL ID Act from being used to bypass all environmental protections

 

Please use the drop down menu above or click on photos below to learn more about current committee projects.