In the United States there has always been great
concern for the state of wildlife within the country.
In addition to looking after human life there
is also ethnic consideration other life forms
as well. It is for this reason that organizations
have been setup to handle particular areas concerning
nature.
One main organization for preservation
of natural life is the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, which is a government organization.
Indeed, preservation of wildlife
is something that government has been interested
for many years now. Though the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service has been in operation for several years
now, it did not start of under this title. This
is because of the fact that the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service (FWS) dates back to 1871, when
an organization called the Bureau of Fisheries
first operated. A predecessor to this agency was
the Bureau of Biological Survey was in operation
in 1885 (Who We Are, 2004).
One of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service’s main parts was the National Wildlife
Refuge System, and this marks its existence as
the first National Wildlife Refuge by President
Theodore Roosevelt (Pelican Island, March 14,
1903) (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004).
It must also be mentioned that
the US-FWS is not the only operative because if
they were the only ones the approach towards preserving
wildlife would be as strong as it is. Therefore,
working with other groups, the mission of the
organization (US-FWS) is to
preserve, protect and ameliorate fish, wildlife,
and plants. Included in this effort is the all-out
efforts to preserve habitats as well that are
mandatory to the survival or several species (U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004).
The following are considered to
be some of the US-FWS’s chief credentials.
The organization:
1. Handles 544 National Wildlife
Refuges over an estimated 96 million acres (U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004).
2. It also handles 69 National Fish Hatcheries.
These produce more than that 150 million fish
per year (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004).
3. It administers the Endangered Species Act as
well. Under this act 1,848 species are put down
as endangered species. As a result of their efforts,
it is now known that within the US two thirds
of endangered species (1,258 species) are from
the US itself (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
2004).
Aside from the efforts being conducted
by the US-FWS, it must also be mentioned that
around 32 million acres of land that is privately
owned is also a large part of Habitat Conservation
Plans. This falls under the Endangered Species
Act (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004).
From the facts and figures presented
above, it is observed that the US-FWS is certainly
an organization that has helped cover areas that
could have been neglected. Their efforts have
helped mark the endangered areas of natural life
and protection for those areas has been implemented.
However, there have also been down sides to these
operations to protect the natural habitat (Geographic
Information Systems & Spatial Data, 2004).
This is largely because the public did not agree
with the findings of US-FWS. Walleye fisheries
in northern Wisconsin were the area of concern
because of the fish content present there.
It was not certain whether or not
the content was diminishing rapidly or not. Due
to this, studies were carried out with tribal,
federal, and state biologists. It was ascertained
that treaty fishing by Chippewa Indians did not
prove detrimental. However, because of this result
controversy has prevailed among the public (Native
American Tribal Assistance, 2004).
Though some may assume that the
US-FWS has permitted endangerment of particular
habitats for concealed reasons, one can also compare
this assumption with the larger picture that tells
one about the larger efforts to preserve wild
life and the habitats too.
Works Cited:
Geographic Information Systems & Spatial Data,
2004.
http://www.fws.gov/data/gishome.html
Native American Tribal Assistance, 2004. http://fisheries.fws.gov/fwsma/nata.htm
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2004. http://www.doiu.nbc.gov/orientation/fws.cfm
Who We Are, 2004. http://www.fws.gov/who/
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