- TUCSON, Ariz. -- A sweeping
wildlife preserve in southwestern Arizona is among the 10 most endangered
U.S. nature refuges, in large part because of illegal drug and migrant
traffic and Border Patrol operations, a conservation group said Friday.
-
- The Cabeza Prieta National Wildlife Refuge, home to the
endangered Sonoran pronghorn antelope, has been damaged by excessive human
presence, a report by Defenders of Wildlife says. The report calls for
construction of a vehicle barrier on the southern edge of the refuge along
the Mexican border.
-
- "We're trying to highlight the fact how special
this place is, but it's also at a crossroads," said Noah Matson, a
Defenders of Wildlife director in Washington who wrote "Refuges at
Risk: America's Ten Most Endangered National Wildlife Refuges 2004."
-
- Arizona has become the busiest entry point for illegal
migrants from Mexico. High-speed off-road chases, abandoned vehicles and
damage to fragile desert landscapes have resulted. In 2001, Cabeza became
the site of Arizona's deadliest border crossing, when 14 people died after
temperatures soared to 46 degrees.
-
- "In an attempt to curb illegal border crossings
and prevent further deaths, border officials have established permanent
camps in the refuge, incongruous with this once-pristine and remote place,
but reflecting the intensity of the problem," the report said.
-
- A call to the Border Patrol office in Tucson was not
immediately returned Friday.
-
- The 10 wildlife preserves cited Friday face some common
threats, including nearby development, pollution and invasive species,
according to the report.
-
- Escalating industrial and corporate development close
to and even inside refuges is the most pervasive threat, now that about
three dozen refuges have more than 1,800 active oil and gas wells, the
report said.
-
- Besides Cabeza, the preserves on the list: Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge, Alaska; Delta National Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana; Desert
National Wildlife Refuge Complex, Nevada; Don Edwards San Francisco Bay
National Wildlife Refuge, California; Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges,
Oregon and California; Lostwood National Wildlife Refuge, North Dakota;
Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, Texas; Pocosin Lakes
National Wildlife Refuge, North Carolina; and Upper Mississippi River National
Fish and Wildlife Refuge, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa.
-
- The United States has 540 wildlife refuges encompassing
nearly 405,000 square kilometres. Half of the endangered refuges in Friday's
report are in the West.
-
- Roger Di Rosa, Cabeza Prieta's manager, said the report
is right about the threat to the refuge. Officials estimate the population
of Sonoran pronghorns at 30 to 40 animals at most.
-
- "The border issue is convoluted, and very complex,"
he said. "The solution to the border problems is not on the border;
it's in Washington, D.C., and Mexico City. So we're just putting a Band-Aid
on the wound to stanch the blood. It's a difficult situation."
-
- © Copyright 2004 Bell Globemedia Publishing Inc.
All Rights Reserved. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM
.20041008.wwild1008/BNStory/specialScienceandHealth/
|
