Secretary Salazar Lauds President’s Intent to Nominate Sam Hamilton as Director of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
June 10, 2009 by USFWS
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar praised President Obama’s announcement that he intends to nominate Sam D. Hamilton to be the next Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Hamilton, a career senior biologist and manager with the Service, currently is director of the agency’s Southeast Region. The nomination requires Senate confirmation.
Secretary Salazar, Joined by White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett, Lays Groundwork for 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps
June 8, 2009 by USFWS
Joined by Senior White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett and several hundred schoolchildren on the National Mall, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today signed a Secretarial Order establishing an Office of Youth in Natural Resources at the Department of the Interior. The event, sponsored by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, also served to kick-off National Fishing and Boating Week.
Secretary Salazar Announces Boating Grants to 28 States to Help Keep Waterways Clean
June 8, 2009 by USFWS
Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today announced that $14.6 million will be awarded to 28 states under the Clean Vessel Act grant program in 2009. The grants will be used to fund the construction and installation of sewage pumpout facilities and floating restrooms, to purchase pumpout boats and provide educational programs for recreational boaters.
Massachusetts Antique Dealer Arrested for Whale Teeth Trafficking
June 2, 2009 by USFWS
The owner of a Nantucket antique business investigated by the Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been charged and arrested on multiple felony counts for illegally importing and selling sperm whale teeth. Sperm whales are protected under the Endangered Species Act and international treaty; their teeth, which are commonly used for scrimshaw, are of commercial interest to antique dealers, collectors and others.
Sentencings Continue in Striped Bass Case
June 2, 2009 by USFWS
A Maryland commercial fisherman will spend 13 months in prison and pay a $4,500 fine and $70,569 in restitution for illegally overfishing striped bass. A multiyear undercover Service/State investigation documented large-scale unlawful harvest and trafficking in this State-regulated food fish; 15 individuals and two wholesale fish dealers have been charged to date.
Interior Secretary Salazar Approves Upper Mississippi River as Wetland of International Importance
June 1, 2009 by USFWS
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced approval of portions of the Upper Mississippi River, including the Midwest’s largest national wildlife refuge, as a Wetland of International Importance. The designation includes more than 300,000 acres of federal and state lands and waters of the Upper Mississippi River floodplain from near Wabasha, Minnesota, to Rock Island, Illinois.
