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Global Warming Endangers Significant Coral Species Statement By Dan Becker, Washington Director, Sierra Club Global Warming Program Washington, D.C. - - Today, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) announced that it was proposing to protect significant coral species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) - specifically the staghorn and elkhorn corals, who are threatened with extinction. The staghorn and elkhorm corals, native to Florida and the Caribbean, have declined between 80% to 98% (dependent on specific location) over the last 30 years. NOAA administrator, retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, stated that "threats to these species include physical damage from human activities and hurricanes, as well as disease and temperature-induced bleaching," caused by global warming In response to today’s announcement by NOAA, the Sierra Club issued the following statement: "By recognizing that global warming ("temperature-induced bleaching") is contributing to the extinction of staghorn and elkhorn coral off the coast of Florida, the Bush administration is acknowledging that there are real, measurable consequences from their failure to act on global warming. By failing to support clean cars and clean energy solutions, the Bush administration has presided over a dramatic increase in global warming pollution. It is time for the Bush Administration to quit the Flat Earth Society and get its head out of the sand on global warming. "The Bush administration has a history of missed opportunities and broken promises on global warming. In its first months in office, the Bush administration broke its campaign pledge to cut global warming pollution from power plants. The same month, the Bush administration announced that it was withdrawing from the Kyoto Treaty on global warming. In addition, the Bush administration has proposed an energy plan that would result in increased heat-trapping emissions from power plants, vehicles, and industries. "The Bush administration proposal to list the staghorn and elkhorn coral under the Endangered Species Act is an admission of a failure of its global warming policies. It is like dialing 911 on a phone that they disconnected. With the elkhorn and staghorn coral now on the verge of being lost forever, the Bush administration has to shoulder its share of the responsibility to pull them back from the brink so they can be conserved for future generations. It is time for the Bush administration to listen to its own scientists, and come up with a plan to protect America's natural heritage in the face of global warming." # # #
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