Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Range States Commit to Polar Bear Protection

There is guarded optimism from wildlife advocates about the recent International Forum on Polar Bear Conservation.  The WWF's Director General said Arctic states have gone some way forward to guaranteeing a future for the magnificent white bear.  He said, "the states have built on forty years of good conservation planning" and urged them to meet the challenges of the next forty years as global warming continues to reduce the Arctic Sea ice pack the bears need to survive.  The five nations that are home to polar bear populations agreed to work on managing habitat in ways that account for shrinking ice and increasing industrial development.  WWF said it will watch to see the intentions expressed are implemented by appropriate actions and will issue "annual report cards" to assess progress.  Despite the good words, climate change will ultimately erode the bears' habitat. Only a global switch to renewable energy will slow or perhaps halt the process from taking place.  US Person says, "throw the switch!"