Saving species with science

From an interview with Gabriela Chavarria by Amanda Mascarelli posted on Nature News:

Coping with climate change is a key priority for conservation in the United States, says new science adviser.

In July, Gabriela Chavarria was named the top science adviser for the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), based in Washington DC. Born in Mexico, she has a PhD in biology from Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and 14 years of experience with non-governmental conservation organizations, most recently the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Her first big task will be presiding over the 27 September release of the service's national climate plan, titled "Rising to the Urgent Challenge". Nature spoke with her about the agency's scientific direction. . . .

What will the scientific priorities be on your watch?
Climate change. This is not a future event — climate change is happening here and now. With it comes so many different things, such as habitat fragmentation and loss, water scarcity and the spread of invasive species.

What role will the USFWS have in addressing climate change?
Our national climate plan focuses on three areas: adaptation, mitigation and engagement. We've built a five-year plan of action, and will be working with federal agencies, non-profit companies, private landowners and stakeholders so that we can protect and connect large intact habitats that will support many species.

One of the biggest pieces of our plan is engagement. We're reaching out to the public and our partners so that we can share information, work together and find joint solutions. Because climate change is a challenge posed to everybody, we really need to engage the public.

We are already playing a big part in the science of climate change. A couple of years ago, the USFWS developed the Landscape Conservation Cooperatives. These are partnerships focused on informing on-the-ground strategic conservation efforts in defined geographical areas.

We are bringing the science to the ground. This is not a Washington thing. We are providing the science at the regional level, so that each region addresses its key challenges.

Oil & gas industries spent record $175 mil. lobbying against climate action

A subscriber to Coral Reef Free-for-all suggested this article -- Oil
& Gas Industries Spent Record $175 Million Lobbying Against Climate
Action -- http://tinyurl.com/37ww89b:

The oil and gas industries unleashed a massive $175 million lobbying
spree last year to derail U.S. efforts to address climate change,
according to a new series of reports by the Center for Responsive
Politics (CRP).

OpenSecrets.org blogger Evan Mackinder reveals just how badly oil and
gas interests pummeled the environmental community, which spent its
own record $22.4 million trying to convince Washington to get its act
together to fight global warming.

As CRP notes, "Goliath whipped David."

CRP's new series, titled "Fueling Washington: How Oil Money Drives
Politics," details the oil and gas industries' outsized influence in
Washington.

In the recent battle over climate legislation, ExxonMobil alone spent
more than all the environmental groups combined, stuffing $27.4
million into K Street coffers to ensure the status quo addiction to
fossil fuels can continue unfettered by concerns for the climate.

Combined with the contributions from Chevron, ConocoPhillips and the
now infamous Koch Industries, Big Oil as a whole "hammered away in the
background" while Washington debated healthcare reform, working to
derail support for a carbon tax or cap-and-trade or anything else
having to do with protecting future generations from dangerous climate
disruption.

Over an eighteen month period, Big Oil spent nearly $250 million to
block climate action in the U.S. House and Senate, CRP reports.