Help Stop the Water Grab Endangering Klamath Waterfowl!
We need your help to avoid another catastrophic die-off of migratory birds in the Klamath Basin. As millions of migrating birds bear down on the Klamath Basin this spring, the wetlands of Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge may be utterly dry. Lower Klamath, the first federally-designated waterfowl refuge in the nation and one of the most important bird refuges in North America, is facing another drought year. However, in a wildly reckless move, officials recently proposed draining what little water is left in the refuge’s publicly-owned wetlands to serve private agribusiness interests in the federal Klamath Project. If this plan is enacted, millions of birds will be in danger of disease outbreaks and severely limited food and habitat during migration.
On the same day that federal officials announced the proposal to drain refuge wetlands, Oregon’s Governor Kate Brown visited the Klamath Basin to officially declare a drought emergency. Unfortunately, the Governor did not address the refuge’s plight in her public comments and announcement.
TAKE ACTION: Please write to Governor Brown today and urge her to demand that Lower Klamath’s water serve its wetland habitats – not private interests – during the spring migration, and to seek long-term solutions that will ensure the Klamath refuges receive adequate supplies of water into the future. We’ve made it easy for you to write to the Governor via the online form below. Please feel free to personalize your email. To increase your effectiveness, a copy of your email will be sent to your U.S. Senators and Representative.