Growing Returns

Selected tag(s): habitat exchanges

How Interior pick can make good on Trump’s promise to honor Theodore Roosevelt

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: December 8, 2016

On Tuesday, President-elect Trump vowed to honor “the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt … one of our great environmentalists.” How will he make good on this promise with his Interior pick? (Credit: Harvard College Library)

Let’s face it. Over the last 30 years, when a democrat is elected president, the environmental community tends to let out a sigh of relief and cheer the appointment of a conservation-minded Secretary of the Interior. Aggies and industry, meanwhile, prepare to hunker down and fight against more endangered species listings and greater restrictions on public lands.

When a republican is elected president, enviros dust off their armor and prepare for battle against the likes of James Watt and Manuel Lujan – two former Interior secretaries known for their anti-environmental, anti-ESA agendas – while farmers and energy industry staff anxiously await the promised freedom of relaxed regulatory burdens.

Appointees on both sides take office prepared to undo the so-called “overreach” of the previous administration. But the new appointees often overreach themselves, resulting in years of lawsuits and delays in achieving their ideological master plan.

Lawyers prosper, but it’s not clear that anyone else does. Meanwhile, the environment continues to suffer. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged conservation, donald trump, ecosystems, environmental defense fund, Interior, Interior department, interior secretary, legacy, mitigation, newmont mining corporation, Partnerships, president-elect, sage grouse, theodore roosevelt, western governors | Read 1 Response

Will Trump’s victory defeat the environment? It’s time to rally around shared values

By David Festa / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: November 16, 2016

Like all Americans, I woke up on November 9 to a new reality: A few more Democrats in Congress, and yes, a President-elect who promised to dismantle our nation’s core environmental protections.

Though the overwhelming majority of rural counties voted for Donald Trump, I do not believe they voted to increase air and water pollution or jeopardize wildlife.

We live in amazing times. Compared to 40 years ago, our environment is healthier, even as our economy has grown 300 percent.

But 40 years is a long time ago, and it’s easy to forget that progress didn’t happen overnight. It took Republican and Democratic administrations to put our bedrock environmental protections in place so the rules laid out in them could be enforced. These laws include:

A wildlife protection act that brought our national symbol, the bald eagle, back from the brink of extinction.
A clean air act that has helped to reduce smog and acid rain that was threatening our children’s health and killing our forests.
A water quality act that has cleaned up our rivers so they may never catch fire again. (Yes, the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland was so polluted that it ignited in 1969.)

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged America, bipartisan, conservation, donald trump, ecosystems, election, environment, farmers, fertilizer use, habitat, market-based, Nevada, Partnerships, pollution, protection, public health, public-private partnerships, ranchers, stewardship, sustainability, sustainable agriculture, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, water quality, wildlife | Comments are closed

What do western ranchers and a southern environmentalist have in common?

By Will McDow / Bio / Published: May 12, 2016

Sagebrush in Carson Valley, Nevada. Photo credit: Flickr user loren chipman.

I trace my love of the outdoors to two memories: the first, sitting with my grandmother watching the goldfinches, chickadees and wrens that visited her feeder, and the second, camping in Pisgah National Forest with my parents and sister.

Days spent with my grandmother in our small South Carolina town left an indelible mark on my life. She taught me a conservation ethic that led me to Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). Camping taught me a love of the land and a respect for those that manage it.

As director of habitat markets, I’m focused on building conservation solutions for wildlife like the greater sage-grouse, a bird that lives more than 2,000 miles from my home in a landscape unlike any of the forests or farms I grew up exploring.

The sage-grouse is an indicator species of a vast declining ecosystem spanning more than 150 million acres across 11 states. The grouse relies on the cover of sagebrush – one of the most iconic symbols of the western landscape.

Because EDF puts a premium on policy, science and collaboration with diverse stakeholders, we’ve been working with landowners, industry, and state and federal agencies to create a habitat exchange program to better ensure the bird’s survival. Common values make this collaboration possible. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged colorado, Colorado Cattlemen's Association, Colorado Habitat Exchange, conservation, ecosystems, environmental defense fund, farmers, greater sage-grouse, habitat exchange, habitat markets, landowners, natural resources, Nevada, North Carolina, Partnerships, ranchers, South Carolina, wildlife, Wyoming | Comments are closed

My life’s work: Building strategies for ag and industry to protect wildlife

By David Wolfe / Bio / Published: March 21, 2016

Could the monarch butterfly be the next passenger pigeon? Read more in Modern Farmer.

Could the monarch butterfly face the same plight of the passenger pigeon? Read more in Modern Farmer.

When I think about what motivates me as a conservationist, I often reflect on the bird species we’ve lost – the Carolina parakeet, the ivory-billed woodpecker, the passenger pigeon.

I remember these species when I work to create pathways to prevent extinction for today’s at-risk wildlife – the lesser prairie-chicken, the golden-cheeked warbler and the greater sage-grouse.

But it’s not just the birds that inspire me. It’s also the people.

My role as director of conservation strategy and habitat markets often requires me to cultivate partnerships with ranchers, farmers, oilmen and large multinational corporations. It’s incredibly satisfying to work with this diverse set of stakeholders to find common ground. Sure, we all have different interests driving us, but I am steadfast in my belief that we can protect natural resources, while at the same time enabling the responsible production of food, fuel and fiber. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged conservation, david wolfe, ecosystems, golden cheeked warbler, greater sage-grouse, lesser prairie-chicken, monarch butterfly, Partnerships, passenger pigeon, Safe Harbor | Comments are closed

Nevada landowners eager to generate conservation credits, help sage-grouse

By Will McDow / Bio / Published: February 18, 2016

The state of Nevada recently made $1 million available to landowners for enhancing and restoring habitat for the greater sage-grouse, with another $1 million becoming available in the fall of 2016.

Nearly two dozen landowners submitted letters of interest to generate conservation credits for the bird – a clear signal that the market for conservation is viable and competitive.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service may have determined that listing the greater sage-grouse on the Endangered Species List was “not warranted,” but that isn’t stopping landowners in key states from stepping up to help the bird, ensuring that it stays off the list. That’s because new conservation programs are coming online that are attractive to landowners, conservationists, and state and federal agencies. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged conservation, ecosystems, environmental defense fund, greater sage-grouse, Nevada, nevada conservation credit system, RCPP, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA, wildlife, will mcdow | Comments are closed

My quest to balance nature and the agricultural economy

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: February 3, 2016

California’s Sutter Buttes are the remnants of a volcano that are sometimes called the “smallest mountain range in the world.”

On a clear day I can see the Sutter Buttes, the smallest mountain range in the world, from my office in Sacramento. It’s a landscape that inspires me.

Although the Sacramento Valley is not without its problems, when I look out my office window, explore the local outdoors with my kids, or catch the woodsy whiff of a pencil made from California incense cedar (yes, I collect those), what I sense in those sights, sounds and smells is balance.

Striking the right balance in our working landscapes

The Sacramento Valley is a real working landscape. I use that term a lot: “working landscape.” By that I mean a place where natural resources are used to provide economic benefit – “working” to support jobs, industries and economies, both local and of scale – in a way that strikes a balance between maximizing profits and sustaining the natural resources, or the “landscape.”

Striking that balance between economic output and environmental protection has been a pillar of my work at EDF. I’ve long believed that if we can find and replicate this delicate mix everywhere, we’d be in much better shape. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged conservation, ecosystems, eric holst, greater sage-grouse, Interior, Michael Bean, mitigation, monarch butterfly, robert bonnie, sustainable agriculture, USDA, wildlife | Comments are closed

What’s next for the greater sage-grouse? A public lands strategy

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 19, 2016

A few months have passed since the greater sage-grouse was deemed “not warranted” for listing under the Endangered Species Act. But that doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten about the bird. Nor have the countless agency staff at the Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service (FS) who continue to work to ensure that the bird stays off of the Endangered Species List.

The listing decision signaled that the state, federal and other conservation plans for the greater sage-grouse should be enough to ensure healthy populations, and now we must continue the hard work on implementing these plans.

BLM and FS have already committed to developing Regional Mitigation Strategies for the greater sage-grouse within one year of the September 2015 listing decision – a strategy that I hope will bring consistency, transparency and high standards to mitigation on public lands. Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged BLM, conservation, ecosystems, endangered species list, forest service, greater sage-grouse, mitigation, regional mitigation strategy, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | Comments are closed

From California to Idaho: Protecting rural pit stops on the monarch butterfly’s great migration

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: January 12, 2016

The eastern population of monarch butterflies overwinter in the forests of central Mexico, with the most prominent migration path following Interstate 35 from Amarillo Texas to Duluth Minnesota. (Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

The eastern population of monarch butterflies overwinters in the forests of central Mexico, with the most prominent migration path following Interstate 35 from Amarillo Texas to Duluth Minnesota. (Credit: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

As a kid growing up in northern California, I found myself migrating to the beaches and boardwalk of Santa Cruz (along with tens of thousands of other land-locked youth) to escape the sweltering inland heat each summer.

Now, as an adult more than a decade into my conservation career, I’ve come to learn that the monarch butterfly, one of America’s most well-known and beloved insects, is drawn to the same place, only during winter.

The western population of monarch butterflies spends their winters along the California coast, seeking the temperate climate and coastal forests the area offers. This overwintering habitat extends as far North as the San Francisco Bay Area and as far South as San Diego along the U.S.-Mexico border. But the highest concentrations occur in a handful of sites in and around Santa Cruz.

A few weeks ago, I paid a visit to my old summer stomping grounds to see this iconic North American butterfly.

First stop: Natural Bridges State Park Read More »

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged agriculture, california, ecosystems, marginal lands, milkweed, monarch butterfly, Natural Bridges States Park, Santa Cruz, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA, Xerces Society | Comments are closed

New White House mitigation standard opens market opportunities for farmers and ranchers

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: November 3, 2015

Today, President Obama announced a plan to safeguard America’s land, water and wildlife by establishing a “no net loss” standard for mitigating impacts on natural resources and encouraging related private investment to deliver better outcomes for the environment.

The plan will create a more sustainable future for the energy and agriculture sectors, for example, that provide our nation’s food, fuel and fiber.

If there is one sector that I believe can gain the most from this new mitigation standard, it’s agriculture.

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Supply Chain, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged CEQ, conservation, ecosystems, environment, environmental defense fund, land, markets, mitigation, net benefit, no net loss, President Obama, presidential memorandum, sustainable agriculture, water, western water, White House, wildlife | Read 1 Response

Ranchers and conservationists step up to avert listing of sage-grouse

By Eric Holst / Bio / Twitter profile / Published: September 22, 2015

Stakeholders conduct field tests for the Colorado Habitat Exchange on a ranch in Colorado.

The decision whether or not to list the greater sage-grouse under the Endangered Species Act was one of the biggest listing decisions of our time.

Thanks to unprecedented public-private partnerships among ranchers, energy developers, conservationists and states, we now have the groundwork to guide future management of our nation’s wildlife and working landscapes.

The “not warranted” decision sends a strong signal that investments in conservation are making a difference, providing the catalyst for a new approaches and a different kind of politics.

Posted in Habitat Exchange, Wildlife Protection / Also tagged colorado, Colorado Cattlemen's Association, Colorado Habitat Exchange, conservation, ecosystems, golden cheeked warbler, Governor Hickenlooper, greater sage-grouse, Interior department, listing decision, monarch butterfly, Nevada, Partnerships, sage grouse, Secretary Jewell, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wyoming | Comments are closed