skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Wednesday, September 18, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Medical copays reduce health care access in MS prisons; Israel planted explosives in pagers sold to Hezbollah according to official sources; Serving looks with books: Libraries fight 'fast fashion' by lending clothes; Menhaden decline threatens Virginia's ecosystem, fisheries.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

JD Vance calls for toning down political rhetoric, while calls for his resignation grow because of his own comments. The Secret Service again faces intense criticism, and a right to IVF is again voted down in the US Senate.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Blunt Sponsors Bipartisan Senate Effort to Protect Wildlife

play audio
Play

Wednesday, July 21, 2021   

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Senators reintroduced the Recovering America's Wildlife Act Tuesday, led by Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., along with Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.

They noted state, territorial and tribal wildlife agencies have identified more than 12,000 species nationwide in need of conservation assistance, including 680 species in Missouri.

Sara Parker Pauley, director of the Missouri Department of Conservation and president of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, said bold action is needed. For instance, there have been 60 to 90% declines in grassland birds across the country.

"I really believe that we are standing at a fork in the road in this country, and in front of us really are two paths that lead to very different futures for the natural world around us," Parker Pauley stated. "Nature really is in crisis all around us."

Missouri could receive up to $20 million of the more than $1.3 billion the bill would dedicate to states and tribal nations. Parker Pauley added it would help address declining grassland birds on both private and public land, restore native prairie and build partnerships with landowners to prevent more species from joining the at-risk list.

Tyler Schwartze, executive director of the Conservation Federation of Missouri, said funds toward Missouri's conservation efforts will be used wisely to conserve species of concern in the state, from the hellbender salamander and the monarch butterfly to the pallid sturgeon and the northern bobwhite quail, among others.

"It takes generations to preserve the important things that we all love and cherish and do outdoors," Schwartze remarked. "Missouri's rivers, forests, prairies, our caves support a diversity of wildlife. So it's important that we protect these things that we all know and love."

Blunt noted the legislation is bipartisan to the core. It has nearly 100 bipartisan co-sponsors in the House. He added it would boost the outdoor recreation economy.

"The pandemic really encouraged a return to nature," Blunt observed. "All you had to do was look at fishing equipment sales, boat sales, hunting and fishing license sales."

He explained people found that fish and wildlife habitats needed more attention than previously thought, and he thinks the bill addresses it.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Including the $236 million in federal funding for wildland fire management recently announced for 2025, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has invested a total of $1 billion to the cause, according to the Department of the Interior. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

This month, the federal government announced funding for next year's wildfire management, totaling $236 million and experts hope threatened …


Social Issues

play sound

From gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson to Superintendent of Public Instruction hopeful Michele Morrow, some Republicans running for office have …

Social Issues

play sound

California is home to more than 181,000 people who are unhoused, with 75,000 in Los Angeles alone, so the Los Angeles Food Policy Council will host a …


The California Department of Conservation is holding a public meeting online on Sept. 24, to update the public on its progress in plugging abandoned oil wells. (Alizada Studios/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Groups concerned about pollution and climate change are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a trio of bills dubbed the "make polluters pay" package…

Social Issues

play sound

This week, National Voter Registration Day was another timely reminder for Ohioans preparing for the 2024 general election. The latest reports from …

The American Heart Association said caregivers often experience personal and spiritual growth, discovering their own resilience, competence and capacity for sacrifice as they help a friend or loved one. (Justlight/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Self-Care Awareness Month and the American Heart Association in Missouri is urging caregivers to take some much-needed time for themselve…

Environment

play sound

In Virginia's waters, the decline of a small but critically important fish is causing growing concern among conservation groups and fishermen alike…

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado voters will decide whether to change the state's constitution to ensure families have school choice as a fundamental right. Kallie Leyba…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021