State Agency
Postpones Endangered
Manatee’s Reclassification
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| Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club (at right), speaks before the FWC Commissioners. (Photo by Terry Nearing.) |
For more information, contact:
Patrick Rose, Aquatic Biologist,
Executive Director
Save the Manatee Club
Phone: 407-539-0990
Cell: 850-570-1373
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Janice Nearing,
Director of Public Relations
Save the Manatee Club
Phone: (407) 539-0990
E-mail: jnearing@
savethemanatee.org
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For Immediate Release: September 12, 2007
Following a request by Florida Governor Charlie Crist, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) voted recently to postpone the decision on reclassifying the manatee at the state level from “endangered” to “threatened” status. Florida's classification system is based on listing/delisting rule language that environmental groups have continually called greatly flawed and that has been objected to by numerous scientists worldwide. Further, environmentalists point to the state’s own findings that 50% of the statewide manatee population could be lost in the next 45 years.
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| (l-r) Ron Ginn, Grace Campbell, and Amy Campbell were among the
people who came to show their support for manatees at the
FWC meeting in St. Petersburg, FL. (Photo by Terry Nearing.) |
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Calling the manatee one of Florida’s beloved natural resources, Florida Governor Charlie Crist issued a letter on September 10th to Rodney Barreto, Chair of the FWC, asking the Commission to postpone the vote on whether to downlist the species. “…given the need for a better method to estimate the population of the Florida Manatee, and the record 417 manatee deaths in 2006," the governor's letter reads, "I believe a more prudent course of action at this time would be to postpone consideration of the proposed change in the status of this species.”
Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club, a national nonprofit group created solely to protect manatees and their aquatic habitat, applauds Governor Crist and expresses his deep appreciation to the Governor for his action. He is available for interviews at the phone numbers above.
View the full text of Governor Crist’s letter.
Thank Governor Crist for asking the Commission to postpone their vote.
Read media articles on this issue.
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