Photo courtesy of Congressman Mike Thompson

ST. HELENA, CA (MPG) - Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-04), Chair of the Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus and a member of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission (MBCC), applauded the U.S. Department of the Interior’s decision to halt proposed changes that could have weakened longstanding protections for wetland easements in the Prairie Pothole Region. The announcement came after Rep. Thompson spoke out against the proposal and more than 200,000 Americans submitted comments on the proposal.

The proposed changes could have allowed increased drainage near protected wetlands, threatening critical waterfowl breeding habitat in the region that produces more than half of North America’s migratory waterfowl.

“I'm glad the Administration reversed course on this dangerous proposal. I spoke out against these changes and urged the Administration to maintain these longstanding protections because these wetlands are critical to our migratory birds and waterfowl,” said Rep. Thompson. “The Administration never should have put these protections at risk in the first place. This is a win for conservation, but we must remain vigilant to make sure these wetlands are protected for generations to come.”

“Waterfowl nesting in the Prairie Potholes are critical for the continental migrations. Recent proposed changes from US Fish and Wildlife Service opening up voluntary conservation easements to tile draining could have been disastrous. Thank you to the wise conservation-minded hunters and fishers, and our own Congressman Mike Thompson who spoke up to defeat this sad proposed change,” said Dr. Frederic Reid, Wildlife Ecologist. 

The Prairie Pothole Region spans portions of Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota and Iowa and produces more than half of North America’s migratory waterfowl. For more than 60 years, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has maintained protections for wetlands covered by voluntary conservation easements.

In July, USFWS opened a 14-day public comment period on potential changes to its drain-tile setback policies. More than 200,000 comments were submitted during the review. On August 14, USFWS announced that “no further action is planned” at this time as it reviews the information received.

Rep. Thompson joined members of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission in sending a letter to the Administration urging it to maintain the existing protections and reject the proposed changes.