Editor,
I don't have to remind the greater part of New Mexico about the ongoing battle over the reintroduction of wolves to the state. I don't have to remind New Mexico that by the early 1940s, we had successfully exterminated almost every species of rodent, predator and other nuisance species to make way for cattle and sheep.
I do have to remind New Mexico, however, that in recent years we have taken a stand for public lands, setting precedence with our landmark lawsuits over wilderness protection, and we have made our case for wildlands and the species that occupy them heard across the country and into Washington. Many of us have frowned upon Sen. Pete Domenici's attempts to drill for oil and gas in our state. We have banded together over local issues like Ojito, Otero Mesa and the Valle Vidal.
Now we have an even bigger threat, and its result will affect all the wild places and species we have worked so hard to protect. More than 100 scientists from New Mexico became a part of history recently, as a letter signed by almost 6,000 scientists from around the country was hand-delivered to every American senator in Washington, D.C., asking for them to uphold the Endangered Species Act.
The letter was endorsed by scientists who have never met each other, ranging from graduate students in biology to leaders in the National Academy of Sciences.
The issue at hand was too big to ignore. A proposed revision to the endangered species bill would weaken protections for endangered species habitat, thus opening the door for developments across the West. Decisions to list species would be handled by government officials - political appointees - instead of by scientists, and it would reduce the amount of data that can be used to list a species, such as genetic information.
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We, as a nation, cannot let this happen. We have let too many species disappear from the country already, bringing others so close to extinction that it is hard to see them in the wild. When was the last time you saw a pine marten in New Mexico?
You do not have to be a scientist to appreciate what the Endangered Species Act has done for our country. Take a look at the list and see what species it has saved. Then call and urge our senators to uphold and strengthen the Endangered Species Act and vote down any measure that will weaken this act, thus robbing us of even more mammalian species that make our country unique in this world.
Natalie Dawson
UNM student
