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Biological Research Disproportionately Affected by Proposed 2012 Appropriations
Ecosystem and biological research programs at the United States
Geological Survey (USGS) could be cut by $10.7 million, a
disproportionately large budget cut, if the House of Representative's
Interior and Environment Appropriations bill is enacted in its
current form. When the proposed spending cuts are considered with the
reductions enacted in the 2011 Continuing Resolution, the budget for
USGS Ecosystems activities (which consists largely of the programs
previously housed within the Biological Resources Discipline), would
decline by 9.3 percent over two years. This is a disproportionate
reduction when compared with other USGS programs and with the agency
as a whole.
The research and monitoring programs that comprise the Ecosystems
account within USGS are vital to the nation. These scientific
activities help decision makers within other Interior bureaus,
states, local governments, and the private sector to understand the
status of our living resources. Much of this information is only
collected by the USGS. Without it, our efforts to combat invasive
species, manage endangered and threatened species, address wildlife
diseases, or restore degraded landscapes would be severely hampered.
The proposed cuts to USGS research include:
* $4.3 million from wildlife and terrestrial endangered species research
* $3.0 million from terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystem studies
* $3.5 million from research on invasive species
* $1.1 million from monitoring of species and habitat status and trends
* $4.4 million from the Cooperative Research Units (partnerships
between universities, states, and USGS to conduct biological research
in 38 states)
The House of Representatives could consider the fiscal year 2012
Interior and Environment Appropriations bill in the next few weeks.
Please
<http://capwiz.com/aibs/utr/1/GGRLQEWLQC/IVUDQEWNGZ/7134307466>take a
few minutes to contact your Representative to share your concerns
about these proposed cuts and to encourage them to oppose spending
cuts to biological and ecosystems research at the USGS.
<http://capwiz.com/aibs/utr/1/GGRLQEWLQC/DTHYQEWNHA/7134307466>
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