ESPN Conservation

"We Are Wetlands," a national coalition of conservationists is launching a major new grassroots campaign calling for the restoration of federal wetlands protections. The centerpiece of the campaign is an online petition seeking a minimum of 80,000 signatures.

That's one signature for every acre of natural wetlands lost each year.

"With more than half of our natural wetlands already gone, we need a strong safety net for wetlands that stretches from coast-to-coast," said James D. Range, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) Chairman, who has worked on wetlands protection legislation — including the original Clean Water Act — for more than three decades.

"Those who would destroy natural wetlands have widened loopholes in the Clean Water Act's fabric, meaning that our current safety net is letting critical resources fall through."

"When natural wetlands disappear, a lot of things disappear with them," said Geoff Mullins, TRCP wetlands initiative manager. "These include a lot of things sportsmen care about particularly deeply, like ducks, geese and fish, along with things that everyone cares about, like clean drinking water."

For more information and to sign the online petition visit www.WeAreWetlands.org.

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