World's Largest Wetland at Risk

Larger than all of England, the landlocked Pantanal basin in southwestern Brazil is the world's largest wetland. According to The Nature Conservancy, the Pantanal harbors the greatest concentration of fauna in the Americas. It is also one of the largest sources of fresh water in South America. But the idyllic scenery is deceiving. Just meters away from the ecological refuge, a large herd of cattle roams freely through the swamp, stomping on floating lily pads. Cattle ranchers chop down trees and sow pasture land, causing most of the Pantanal's destruction, environmentalists say. The Pantanal's destruction could affect millions of people as far downstream as Asuncion and Buenos Aires.

http://planetark.org/wen/51578

Washington: BLM Restoring Wetlands

Waterfowl are riding the coattails of the federal land consolidation program in Eastern Washington. Now that it holds large blocks of choice habitat in the channeled scablands region, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management has become an especially attractive partner for Ducks Unlimited, an international non-profit wetlands conservation group. Restored to their natural state, areas of the scablands exceed the wetland density in many areas of the Prairie Potholes region that produce most of the waterfowl for North American flyways, said Chris Bonsignore, DU habitat biologist based in Spokane.

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2009/feb/15/blm-restoring-wetlands/

California: Restoring OC's Natural Landscape - and not a chemical in sight

DeSimone's "before" pictures show a sterile-looking slope of dry, straw-colored stalks, the familiar aftermath of a thistle invasion. (First photo shows thistle, second photo, same hillside after restoration; all photos courtesy Scott Gibson, Starr Ranch.) "All our restoration work - native grasslands, coastal sage scrub - begins with artichoke thistle," DeSimone said on a recent visit to one of her restoration sites. "We began with five years of research on its biology and ecology."

http://greenoc.freedomblogging.com/2009/02/14/restoring-ocs-natural-landscape-and-not-a-chemical-in-sight/4434/

Canada: Restoration Program Hires Forestry Workers

Now, a new government program in the east Kootenay's is bringing together laid off mill workers and a grassland restoration society in a way that is benefiting both. Through the Rocky Mountain Trench Society's Job Opportunities Program, a dozen mill workers have been hired to clear the overgrowth of trees to open up grazing areas for wildlife. The crew is based out of Cranbrook and will be involved in several east Kootenay restoration projects.

http://calgary.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20090216/CGY_forestry_trees_090216/20090216/?hub=CalgaryHome

Colorado: Fort Collins Plans Prairie Dog Cull

Last month, high winds whipped top soil from the Fossil Creek Wetlands Natural Area in Fort Collins across an adjacent highway, creating a scene that looked like something out of the dust bowl of the 1930s. Now, Fort Collins officials say, they are going to have to kill prairie dogs on four of the city's 40 natural areas - or open spaces - in an effort to restore grasslands that will prevent the severe erosion. "The reason we need to remove the prairie dogs is because we have had several unsuccessful attempts to restore the grasslands on those sites," said Rick Bachand, senior environmental planner with Fort Collins' Natural Areas Program.

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_11689469

New Report Shows Loss of Coastal Wetlands in Eastern U.S.

One reason wetland loss is concentrated in coastal watersheds is that with large numbers of people living here - more than half of the nation's population lives in coastal counties in densities five times greater than inland counties - the building of roads, homes and businesses have accelerated wetlands loss, particularly along the Gulf of Mexico. Wetland restoration is also more difficult in coastal areas where land values are high and factors such as storms and large expanses of soft muddy ground hamper restoration efforts.

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2009/20090217_wetlandsloss.html

Scientists Warn of Persistent 'Dead Zones' in Bay

In the Chesapeake Bay, what scientists call a "regime shift" happened in the early 1980s, when bottom-water oxygen levels dipped even lower than would have been expected, given the amount of nutrients in the water. That trend continued for two decades. "Managers advocating spending money to restore the system have been losing faith because it seems like nothing is happening," said W. Michael Kemp, a professor at the Maryland center.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/16/AR2009021601150.html

Utah: Sierra Club Partners with Indigenous Environmental Network

The Sierra Club and the Indigenous Environmental Network are fighting a project that would bring one of the dirtiest forms of energy extraction in the world to eastern Utah. The proposed Antelope Creek tar sands oil project threatens to disrupt wildlife, poison and dry up rivers, and harm human health with hazardous air pollutants. The project would also produce an exorbitant amount of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. 

http://thecirclenews.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=91&Itemid=1

California: Plan to Restore Marsh Unveiled

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the California Department of Fish and Game have identified two preferred restoration projects. One involves reintroducing tidal flow to 950 acres of Hill Slough Wildlife Area to restore and enhance tidal marsh habitat for the benefit of multiple species that utilize the Suisun Marsh, at a cost of $800,000. The other would be to contribute $150,000 to an effort to control non-native invasive weeds on 371-acres of the Grizzly Island Wildlife Area, which will enhance habitat value for waterfowl and a number of other animal and plant species that inhabit the Suisun Marsh.

http://www.thereporter.com/ci_11687003