Please oppose H.R. 9171, the House version of the Interior and Appropriations Bill because there are over 2 dozens sections included which would devastate wildlife and wild places.  Areas of the bill focus on funds for drilling, oil and gas, despite the repercussions of the use of such land or the implications it imposes on wildlife and habitat. The land that would be utilized for these purposes is federal, much of which is protected land such as national monuments and habitat for threatened species.  The bill contains a legislative rider that restricts the use of funds to ban the use of lead ammo and tackle. The use of lead in hunting and fishing has been connected to the deaths of many species as the result of lead poisoning, including BALD EAGLES and the endangered WHOOPING CRANE. Lead tackle poisons the waters and threatens not only the aquatic ecosystem, but also the animals who rely upon that water for survival. 

The bill also will not allow funds for the EPA to require livestock farms to report methane gas emissions. This is an implication of climate crisis denial and without the monitoring of these emissions, future efforts to implement methods of conservation will prove difficult. 

The Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge, Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Superior National Forest and the Boundary Waters watershed are all threatened by this bill.

Of greatest concern to me is Section 125 which, not only delists the GRAY WOLF but it also blocks judicial review, preventing this enactment from being overturned. Since 2020, more than 2900 gray wolves have been killed in the continental U.S. Wolves are vital to the balance of their ecosystem, which affects the national ecosystem, which ultimately can have global implications over time. Without human interference, their numbers are naturally kept in balance, and they regulate the populations of herbivores and the biodiversity of vegetation and all the species within that habitat. In a pack, each wolf is important. They rely on their numbers and the often matriarchal structure of their family. Wolves depend on their social network in order for survival. Killing one wolf can have potential fatal effects on members of the pack, since this can often trigger a dismantling of their social system. One extremely critical fact about wolves is that they do not interbreed. They are threatened by habitat loss and climate change, but mostly by extreme hunting. By killing random wolves, their survival is disturbingly decreased since this depletes the number of potential mates. If all the wolves are related, they will not breed. Since states like Idaho, Montana and Wyoming allow the hunting of about 90% of the wolves in those states, this qualifies them as being functionally extinct in the U.S. If there is a concern about livestock, wolves are only responsible for less than 1% of livestock death, and there are a number of effective nonlethal means to be able to coexist with wolves.

There are so many other species who will be threatened by this bill. The GRIZZLY BEAR is another apex predator who helps to regulate the environment and ecosystem. They are the only true competition with wolves in terms of prey (apart from humans of course.)  Between the gray wolf and the grizzly bear, herbivore numbers are regulated. They also serve as food resources for each other. The predators will often steal each others food given the opportunity, therefore if a grizzly hunts, the wolf may also have the opportunity to eat, and the opposite is true. This again is the balance of nature. Sections 128, 129, 141, 149 all remove protections for the grizzly.

The GREATER SAGE GROUSE's habitat has already been significantly reduced as a result of mining causing their numbers to decrease by 93%. FRESHWATER MUSSELS are severely in danger of extinction due to habitat destruction. They are vital for natural water filtration and their presence ensures a healthy environment to many other species. CANADA LYNXES would lose the little land they have left which would be devastating and possibly eliminate the species from the lower 48 altogether. This would have a rebound effect on the population of the SNOWSHOE HARE and the natural balance. The LESSER PRAIRIE CHICKEN has lost 92% of their habitat as a result of agriculture and land development.  WOLVERINES would lose protections despite already being threatened due to habitat loss, human activities such as trapping and development, and climate change. 

I am asking you to please oppose this bill. Any of these species could become extinct in your lifetime, or your children's or grandchildren's lifetimes. You can stop this. We must do something to create a future that is sustainable for all life. Humans and wildlife have coexisted for so long and yet now the possibility of coexistence is depleting, as is our own ability to sustain ourselves as a species. Please protect our federal lands for historic preservation and for the future of everything I hold sacred. And I know I'm not the only one.

Thank you for your time and consideration.