The Struggle to Save Polar Bears

Despite threatened status for polar bears in the US, habitat is not protected and Iceland uses human safety as excuse to kill the first bear seen there since the mid 90s

The ongoing battle to protect ANWR, not just for polar bears, but for all arctic species, has just taken one step up and two steps back. The polar bear (Ursus maritimus) has finally been listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

But in the same breath the US government also allowed for oil exploration in prime polar bear habitat. Getting the polar bear listed under the ESA, should have protected critical habitat in areas like ANWR That hasn’t happened.

In Iceland, the return of thick pack ice resulted in a polar bear arriving on land and being shot. Whenever the ice becomes thick in the area between Greenland and Iceland, there is a chance of a polar bear, caught on a drifting floe, to end up in Iceland. Last time it happened was in the mid 90s.

There is no doubt that polar bears can be dangerous but in this case people, coming out of curiosity to see the bear, were allowed to get too close. Rather than controlling them, the decision was made to shoot the bear.

At some point we are going to have to find a way to strike a better balance between our needs and those of wildlife. We can’t claim to care about endangered species and not be willing to make compromises to save them.

Let your government, be it Icelandic or American, know that what has happened/is happening to the polar bear(s) is not acceptable. Don’t let fear mongering-the price of gas or the dangers presented by a wild animal- be used to allow governments to make bad decisions.