POLL REVEALS ENDANGERED SPECIES SUPPORT

Do we have a moral obligation to protect endangered species and the diversity of life that shares our planet?

Apparently Texans think we do. According to United Press International a poll conducted in late 1994 revealed that, "...an overwhelming majority of Texans support strong protection of natural resources."

The poll questioned 400 randomly selected adult Texans, (no nasty cracks about "adult Texans," please), about a variety of environmental protection programs. One of the sponsoring organizations, Public Citizen, reported that, "...the poll found that support for environmental protection reaches across party, racial and geographic lines, with 80 percent agreeing that society has a moral obligation to protect wildlife diversity, even if the species have no current economic value."

Other organizations involved in the polling project included the Sierra Club, the National Wildlife Federation and the Texas Committee on Natural Resources. They also reported that:

--Sixty-two percent believe the state must do more to prevent or clean up water pollution, while 59 percent said more should be done to prevent air pollution.

--Sixty percent said they agreed that the state needs to set aside more public land to protect endangered species and water quality.

--The strong support for setting aside more land cuts across Democratic, Republican and independent voters.

Interestingly, as the national debate over the future of the US Endangered Species Act (ESA) continues, the poll also reported that almost 75 percent of the respondents said they favored strengthening or retaining current protections for endangered species, while only 15 percent said such protections had "gone too far."

Most environmentalists believe that retaining a strong and effective ESA is vital to virtually all environmental protection programs. Unfortunately, most environmentalists also believe that the future of the ESA is the current Congress is doubtful at best.

WHAT WE CAN DO

The major culprit in the endangered species battle is loss of habitat. It is the single biggest threat to biodiversity and endangered species. In some cases habitat may mean a few square feet inhabited by a colony of rare plants and the insects that pollinate these plants while receiving the nourishment they need. In other cases it may be thousands of acres that house, and protect, intricate ecosystems consisting of a multitude of inter-connected life forms.

We can help stop the breakneck pace of habitat destruction by supporting efforts to reauthorize the ESA, and by supporting organizations such as the Nature Conservancy which protect and conserve critical ecosystems and wilderness areas.

To find out how to get involved in the national movement to protect endangered species through habitat conservation we can EMAIL markwhite@maui.net

COPYRIGHT 1994 BY JEFF STARK

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