Help keep Sea Turtles on Endangered species List

[reefsavers.org]

well I did some more diggin and it is Leatherbacks and Loggerhead Sea Turtles that they are considering heres the link where iI found the Information.
I guess this may change your opinion huh......
www.cfnews13.com keyword Sea Turtles.

 

[DennisS]

NOAA is an organization that has set up a sampling methodology that they use year after year to determine the populations of the sea turtle . Usually the same scientists doing the same sampling year after year. They make determination based on those numbers. It's hard data. The population goes up or down.

Please post the link where they said opinions will make a difference in the sea turtle status

If its about popular opinion determining the status, why bother to spend all that time and money doing surveys.

 

[FL_Chad]

Oh yeah - lets celebrate - our govt agencies use sound science when considering these kind of things. Just take a look at the science they use to replinish sand dunes. Lets see - an extension into turtle season to run their bulldozers up and down the beach temporarily replinishing our beach with fill DIRT. Hmmmmm, maybe if they get em off the list all together, then they wont have to apply for an extension next year to pump sand on the beach during turtle season or bug the yankees who live on the beach to turn off their lights from May to October.

 

[archman]

NOAA is an organization that has set up a sampling methodology that they use year after year to determine the populations of the sea turtle . Usually the same scientists doing the same sampling year after year. They make determination based on those numbers. It's hard data. The population goes up or down.

Please post the link where they said opinions will make a difference in the sea turtle status

If its about popular opinion determining the status, why bother to spend all that time and money doing surveys.

NOAA is very much directed by political machinations, just like most other federal and state agencies. Policy-type decisions are frequently made not by the scientists, but by appointed managers. NOAA is merely following the herd with the current political climate, which favors loosening environmental and wildlife regulations, especially in the aquatic realm.

Sea turtles aren't the only species being reconsidered for reduced protection of late. There are others. And public opinion very much matters. The public is a lobby which can influence lawmakers to put pressure on the feds. This is how the majority of environmental legislation is passed in the United States; public outcry.

Dropping species from protected status frees up the feds from paying for monitoring and enforcement for those species. Sea turtle protection costs a significant amount of cash for USFW and NMFS (the two lead organizations for sea turtle protection), cash that is being pressured to be directed in other places. The Coast Guard's already dropped out of the game for all intensive purposes... they're stretched thin just keeping up with Homeland Security.

NOAA is feeling out the public. Their motivation is most likely:
A. budget cuts/redirects
B. outside pressure

I'd vote that it's both. I already know they're facing budgetary and staffing problems.