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U.S. to Push More International Regulation on Polar Bear Hunting

As a result of global warming fears, the U.S. Department of the Interior is asking other nations to push for more regulation on polar bear hunting under an international trade agreement.

The Department has now asked other countries to support a ban on the commercial trade of polar bears while seeking more restrictions on hunting at the next meeting of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). 

The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) previously reported that a group of anti’s, including the International Fund for Animal Welfare, Humane Society International, and Defenders of Wildlife, were advocating for the U.S. to adopt this position at the next CITES meeting scheduled for March 13-15, 2010 in Doha, Qatar. 

This maneuver is a preemptive effort similar to the listing of polar bears as “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS).  In fact, the polar bear was the first species to be listed under the ESA due to future concerns over global warming.  Both efforts are based on long-term projections of what may happen over the course of decades, not verifiable scientific evidence.  The USSA filed comments with the FWS in 2007 clarifying that point.

The USSA maintains that the ESA listing and CITES modifications are political gestures that will do nothing to deal with any ice shrinkage.  Further, many current polar bear populations are thriving and there is no agreement on future population projections among professional wildlife managers.  Finally, if fears over global warming persist, it is likely that anti-hunting groups will attempt to force other species onto the ESA list using the same unfounded arguments.

“Current and expanded prohibitions regarding polar bear hunting do nothing to address fears over shrinking arctic ice and only will establish the dangerous precedent of pushing aside science to attain unassociated goals,” stated Bud Pidgeon, USSA president and CEO.  “Those who oppose hunting are foolishly attempting to slam the door on responsible hunters who contribute the dollars so vital to continued conservation efforts today and tomorrow.”