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Conservation Chairperson:
Gretchen Starke gstarke@pacifier.com
"I have heard that Vancouver Audubon is for this growth management. What does growth management have to do with birds?" So someone might say.
Conservation is one of the activities of Vancouver Audubon. Conservation means conserving the birds and other wildlife that people who join Audubon might like to watch. This can mean getting involved in far ranging issues. Why? Because birds need a place to live and a place to get their groceries. That place is called habitat. Each species requires its own kind of habitat. If we want birds to watch, we must protect habitat. All kinds of habitat.
These are the issues Vancouver Audubon is working
on this year:
GROWTH MANAGEMENT - Unplanned growth -- urban sprawl -- eats up wildlife habitat more completely than nearly any other kind of human activity. At the moment we are, in coalition with other groups, working on the county's wildlife habitat ordinance and establishing habitats of local importance. We are also attempting to prevent sprawl in rural areas.
CAMP BONNEVILLE - The Army is giving up over 1,000 acres of undeveloped forest land in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Should it all be used for nature-oriented activities such as hiking, wildlife habitat, and outdoor education? Or should some of it be used to train police for car chases? Vancouver Audubon thinks the uses should fit the natural setting.
STEELHEAD AND THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT - Fish are wildlife, too. Besides, what is good for steelhead is also good for numerous species of birds. Lower Columbia River steelhead are now listed as threatened under the endangered species act and Audubon at all levels supports the saving of species in trouble. Threats to steelhead in Clark County? Polluted and too-warm water caused by removal of plants along streams, siltation from construction, runoff from roads, and too many septic tanks. We will be watching this issue closely.
STATE AND NATIONAL ISSUES - Vancouver Audubon is part of National Audubon and we work with other chapters including participating in the statewide conservation committee of Audubon. As such, we lobby the legislature and write letters to Congress. In the past year, we have written to our Senators and Congressional Representative on the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River and the Columbia River Gorge Scenic Area.
If you are interested in birds and the environment and want to do something positive, Vancouver Audubon is for you.
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