ABA President Jeff Gordon joins hands with other refuge supporters representing a broad coalition of interests along the proposed site of the border wall at the Save Santa Ana protest march last month. Photo ©Stan Sterba
If you want to help preserve and preserve access to some of the greatest birding in the entire ABA Area, it’s time to speak up (again)!
Since the protest march last month in opposition to the proposed border wall at Santa Ana NWR, the issue has unfortunately seemed to fall under the radar compared to other recent events. Santa Ana and other border birding hotspots are still at risk, however, and it is still important for the birding community to keep the pressure on our elected officials.
The most important thing you can do is to keep calling or mailing Senators opposing loss of bird habitat and critical birding sites with construction of additional border wall. The goal is to keep border wall funding out of the upcoming Appropriations Bill, because once it is in the bill there will be the momentum to push it through.
There is also, until September 25, the opportunity to email comments to Customs and Border Patrol at commentssenv@cbp.dhs.gov You can find much more information on the details of the proposed wall and the very limited public feedback process so far at the web site for the Lower Rio Grande Valley group of the Sierra Club. A shout out to the Sierra Club at the local, state, and national levels: they have provided valuable leadership in pointing out the negative conservation and other impacts of the proposed additional border wall and helped assemble a diverse group of voices in support of our wild spaces.
Here is a video to show your friends who may not be aware of what is at stake. Thanks to Andres Sanchez for shooting and editing it.
Here are some more links to share if need be.
- An NPR story on the Santa Ana march featuring ABA President Jeff Gordon
- A New York Times Article about the march and the diverse coalition of interested parties.
- A Sierra Club article also featuring ABA’s Jeff Gordon.
- The Save Santa Ana Facebook page, where you can get updated information and opportunities for action.
Thanks for all the work the birding community has done on this issue. There is still reason to believe we can prevent this wall at one of our most special sites.