ENWC201 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: National Environmental Policy Act, National Wildlife Refuge, Marine Mammal Protection Act
18 May 2018
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Textbook Exam Guide (2)
● Estimates of NA populations prior to Europe exploration vary from 500,000 to 5 million
● Over 10,000-15,000 years 35 genera of mammals and many bird species disappeared
○ Unsure if predation, global temps, changing vegetation or other factors
● They commonly set fires to maybe clear underbrush for easier hunting, improve wildlife
habitat, to clear land for crops, and to herd wild animals
Market Hunting Leads to Control Efforts
● Idaho 1864 first imposed closed season on bison hunting
● US Army knew extermination of bison would lead to control of the Native Americans
● Disappearance of bison became the turning point for wildlife conservation in the US and
Canada
Conservation movement begins
● Concept of conservation was different across the 3 countries
○ Mexico had a utilitarian view of forests, and wildlife captured little economic
interest
○ Canada - hunting for the rich became a sport
○ Evolution of hunters as conservationists ran parallel in the US and Canada
however developed slower in Canada due to smaller population and vast
forested habitat unsuitable for farming
Preserving Lands for Public Use
● Group of explorers pleaded with gov of Montana that yellowstone area was too beautiful
to exploit for profit and it should be held in trust for the entire people - 1870
● George Catlin - a painter - in 1832 proposed first thought of public national park
● Pres Ulysses S Grant est first national park in the US - Yellowstone
● First national park in NA was in what is now Mexico City in 13th century
● US army dispatched to guard the park
○ Protection here was particularly important as it signified concept of national
assets in public interest
● John Muir formed Sierra Club 1890
● Hetch Hetchy Dam Project split conservationists from preservationists
○ Roosevelt vs John Muir
● US National Park Service created 1916 - Roosevelt
● Pelican Island, FL became first National Wildlife Refuge System in 1903 -Roosevelt
● In 1909 Canadian Commission on Conservation was formed to mirror Roosevelt’s efforts
in US conservation clubs formed in the US such as Campfire Club, the Boone and
Crockett Club and their individual members influenced Canadian legislatures
● 1937 scientists and conservationists lobbied for the Pittman-Robertson Fed Aid in
Wildlife Restoration Act
○ Excised an 11% tax on all hunting weapons and ammunition
○ In the first year provided nearly $3 million
○ Funds are collected and distributed by number of hunting licenses they sell, their
population, and land area
○ Funds used for restoration projects, research, and education
Rachel Carson
● 1907-1964 - Silent Spring
● Her book challenged agricultural practices and lack of gov oversight as she linked the
health of natural world to that of humans
● Her testimony before Congress in 1963 led to formation of the EPA in 1970 and passage
of the federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act which banned DDT in US
Nixon- the reluctant environmentalist
● ESA, Marine Mammal Protection Act, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the
Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act , and the EPA was est
● NEPA led to the council on environmental quality which requires environmental impact
statements on al gov projects - and makes all environmental decision making an open
and democratic process
The North american Model of Wildlife Conservation
● The NA Model of Wildlife Conservation based on the Public Trust Doctrine of public
ownership of wildlife -Wildlife does not understand borders, need common goals
● The NA model holds that wildlife is a public and international resource managed by
policies based on sound science
● Killing wildlife should only occur for legitimate reasons
Conservation by Consumption
● Both need and success of NA model of wildlife conservation revolved around
sustainability of harvest
○ Began as a system of harvest limits to stop rapid decline of wildlife populations
during an overexploitation era
Managing Animal Abundance
● hunters and trappers are the most effective logistical agents of actual population
management
● With initial protections, pops became overpopulated, some efforts were too successful -
the local pops exceeded the carrying capacity
○ Reproduction decreased and mortality increased because of intraspecific
competition for resources available
● Often needed to maintain wildlife populations below environmental and social carrying
capacity to reduce die offs to provide for more productive populations - to protect die
offs, provide more productive populations, protect habitats and reduce spread of disease
or reduce conflicts with humans
● Biological carrying capacity is normal carrying capacity - social carrying capacity
depends on many factors like conflicts with humans
Habitat Definition
● Habitat is an area with the combination of resources and environmental conditions that
promotes residency by individuals of a given species and allows them to survive and
reproduce
Document Summary
Estimates of na populations prior to europe exploration vary from 500,000 to 5 million. Over 10,000-15,000 years 35 genera of mammals and many bird species disappeared. Unsure if predation, global temps, changing vegetation or other factors. They commonly set fires to maybe clear underbrush for easier hunting, improve wildlife habitat, to clear land for crops, and to herd wild animals. Idaho 1864 first imposed closed season on bison hunting. Us army knew extermination of bison would lead to control of the native americans. Disappearance of bison became the turning point for wildlife conservation in the us and. Concept of conservation was different across the 3 countries. Mexico had a utilitarian view of forests, and wildlife captured little economic interest. Canada - hunting for the rich became a sport. Evolution of hunters as conservationists ran parallel in the us and canada however developed slower in canada due to smaller population and vast forested habitat unsuitable for farming.
