News
National Wildlife Refuge System
Today, the National Wildlife Refuge System is celebrating its 118th birthday – and everyone is invited to join in the fun.
On this date in 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt established Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge in Sebastian, Florida. The refuge was created to provide a haven for wading birds such as snowy egrets, and protect a critical rookery for species including the brown pelican and wood stork.
Located in the northeast corner of Nevada, Ruby Lake NWR is an expansive marsh nestled in the High Desert, at the southern end of the Ruby Mountains. Today, Senator Catherine Cortez Masto introduced a bill that would protect the Ruby Mountains and Ruby Lake NWR from future oil and gas development. We applaud the Senator for her forethought and for the inclusion of the Ruby Lake NWR in this package.
Last night, under pressure from both sides of the aisle and with unemployment benefits lapsing and a government shutdown looming, President Trump signed the huge, 5,000+ page omnibus bill/COVID relief bill into law. This bill was passed last week by both chambers of Congress, and we have been waiting on news that the President would sign it into law.
Today, the Bureau of Land Management stated that they are going to hold a lease sale for oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on January 6, 2021. Ever since the creation of the Arctic Refuge 60 years ago, oil and gas companies have been lobbying for access to this protected land. This step to hold a lease sale is the formal opening of the Arctic Refuge for development for the first time in history.
Each year during the second week of October we celebrate our nation’s unique and wonderful national wildlife refuges with National Wildlife Refuge Week. In a non-COVID year, our wildlife refuges would be full of visitors this week--festivals, guided nature walks, and educational presentations in the Visitor’s Center. This year, we celebrate our nation’s refuges as individuals, with quiet moments on these special lands.
What we found is astounding: 513 ESA-listed species are found or are dependent on at least 444 refuges.
Here we celebrate the refuge system and the diversity of imperiled species that call it home, reveal critical threats to refuges and their wildlife, and look to the future of America's public lands network dedicated to our wildlife.
The National Wildlife Refuge System encompasses more than 850 million acres of lands and waters across America’s 568 National Wildlife Refuges, including 5 Marine National Monuments. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is responsible for managing these lands and is expected to fulfill its obligation to the Refuge System’s 59 million annual visitors and diverse wildlife on a budget of a mere 59¢ per acre, a fraction of what other land agencies receive per acre. For comparison, the National Park Service receives $31 per acre for land management.
