This week, US Congressman Joe Neguse (CO), Congressman Alan Lowenthal (CA), and Congressman Jared Huffman (CA) introduced a resolution in the US House of Representatives calling for a national biodiversity strategy.
The US and the globe currently face an unprecedented biodiversity crisis, driven largely by human activity. Recent scientific studies have confirmed human-driven activities are significantly damaging Earth’s ecosystems, altering marine environments, exploiting wildlife and plant species, accelerating climate change and polluting air, land and water. The decline of biodiversity disproportionately impacts indigenous and other communities that rely on nature for essential services.
The resolution, introduced by Congressman Neguse, calls for a national commitment to addressing the biodiversity crisis by establishing a strategy that would ideally be developed through an interagency process announced by the president in an Executive Order. The Strategy process would encourage agencies to identify and pursue a full range of actions within existing laws and policies and encourage consideration of new ones. It would also promote accountability and progress in addressing the biodiversity crisis through a new quadrennial assessment.
“The decline of biodiversity presents a direct threat to the security, health and well-being of our communities and our planet. Human-caused activity has led to the damage of ecosystems, the exploitation of wildlife, increased pollution and the acceleration of climate change,” said Congressman Neguse. “It is clear we need a coordinated whole-of-government approach to tackle these issues, and the United States should play a leadership role on the international stage in this regard. It’s time for the U.S. to take an ambitious global approach to address these issues and lead the world in conservation and climate action, that’s exactly what this resolution calls for.”
The resolution is supported by 60+ Colorado-based and national groups working on wildlife protection and conservation. Read the letter of support here.
“Given the current biodiversity crisis, it is more important than ever to assert U.S. leadership in the context of renewed global efforts to protect biodiversity and nature,” said Jamie Rappaport Clark, president and CEO of Defenders of Wildlife. “By establishing a National Biodiversity strategy, we can focus our commitment to addressing wildlife and habitat loss and tackling species extinction. Defenders of Wildlife thanks Rep. Neguse for his leadership on this issue and urges Congress to adopt this legislation.”
The resolution lays out key areas that a national biodiversity strategy should include direction on, including:
- Setting a national goal of protecting at least 30% of United States lands and water to conserve biodiversity and address climate change by 2030;
- Affirming the need to protect threatened, endangered, and at-risk species from further extinction;
- Climate adaptation and mitigation strategies for biodiversity;
- Establishing climate corridors for conservation of species affected by climate change
- Establishing regular monitoring, reporting, research and development and adequate funding for conservation efforts.
In his first term, Congressman Neguse has been a leader on efforts to address climate change, conserve public lands, and tackle the biodiversity crisis. Congressman Joe Neguse joined a group of lawmakers to propose conservation of 30% of U.S. lands and waters by the year 2030. In August, he partnered with Senator Tom Udall to introduce landmark pesticide reform legislation to reduce levels of dangerous pesticides to protect farmers, children and consumers.
In 2019, Congressman Neguse introduced legislation that was signed into law to protect and conserve wildlife in the Platte River Basin, and ensure compliance of water projects in Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska with the Endangered Species Act.