RESOLUTIONS

Each year the board of directors and general membership of the North Carolina Wildlife Federation vote and pass resolutions to express a stance on a particular issue.

RESOLUTIONS: 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003

2009 RESOLUTIONS

THE NORTH CAROLINA WILDLIFE FEDERATION CALL TO UPHOLD THE INTEGRITY AND CREDIBILITY OF THE WILDLIFE RESOURCES COMMISSION AND THE PROCESS BY WHICH COMMISSIONERS ARE APPOINTED

WHEREAS sworn testimony in the recent hearings of the Board of Elections regarding irregularities in the Mike Easley for Governor Campaign of 2004 alleged that the appointment of  certain commissioners to the Wildlife Resources Commission was predicated upon political donations of over $100,000; and,

WHEREAS Wildlife Commissioners serve a crucial and sensitive role as guardians of the fish and wildlife resources of North Carolina that demands the highest level of integrity and objectivity as they establish rules and policies to guide the agency in its mission to provide a sound and representative fish and wildlife conservation program; and,

WHEREAS the North Carolina Wildlife Federation was formed in 1945 on the premise that fish and wildlife conservation programs must be conducted in a manner beneficial to the resource and representative of citizens who value and enjoy outdoor recreational activities and was instrumental in the establishment of the Wildlife Resources Commission in 1947 based upon that principle; and,

WHEREAS the alleged circumstances of the appointment of certain North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission Commissioners with an expectation of political contributions predicating the nomination is contrary to the law prohibiting the sale of office, erodes public confidence, and casts aspersion on the integrity and operations of the agency and its policy makers.

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the North Carolina Wildlife Federation condemns the practice of appointing Wildlife Commissioners based upon political considerations as contrary to the founding principles upon which the Wildlife Resources Commission was created, and calls for appointments to the Commission to be solely based on interest, concern, knowledge, and commitment to the natural resources of our State.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED the Wildlife Federation, on behalf of all sportsmen and fish and wildlife enthusiasts in North Carolina, calls upon Governor Beverly Perdue to use all the means at her disposal to determine the truth of the allegation that  appointments to the Wildlife Resources Commission were  made in return for political donations; and, if that allegation is substantiated thereby calling the integrity of the Wildlife Resources Commission into question, the Wildlife Federation further calls upon Governor Perdue to immediately demand the resignations of any individual who were appointed under such circumstances and to appoint duly qualified, representative citizens to serve out those replaced terms thereby restoring as much credibility to the current appointment process and structure of the Wildlife Commission as it and the mission it represents rightly deserves.

OPPOSITION TO CAROLINA CEMENT COMPANY (TITAN CEMENT PLANT) – NORTHEAST CAPE FEAR RIVER

WHEREAS, North Carolina has some of the most pristine waterways and wetlands in the world, and thousands of local residents and tourist use these waterways each year; and,

WHEREAS, wetlands perform many functions valuable to society including providing for the purification of drinking water, reducing flood damage, removing excess nutrients, sediments, and other pollutants; and,

WHEREAS, wetlands are among the most productive biological systems on Earth and provide essential habitat for a multitude of wildlife species with important economic, recreational and ecological values; and,

WHEREAS, the Cape Fear River estuary has high fish species diversity, with 250 species documented including high priority species such as the Atlantic sturgeon, striped bass, American eel, and American shad; and,

WHEREAS, the North Carolina Wildlife Action Plan identifies the Northeast Cape Fear River as a priority area for habitat protection. Priority areas have high species diversity, rare species and endemic species and merit the highest level of conservation measures; and,

WHEREAS, cement plants are among the worst industrial polluters, emitting large amounts of pollutants from the burning of coal for fuel and the pulverizing of limestone; and,

WHEREAS, the proposed site of Carolina Cement Company (Titan Cement Plant) would degrade over 600 acres of pristine wetlands and wildlife habitat on the Northeast Cape Fear River; and,

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the North Carolina Wildlife Federation gathered February 28, 2009, strongly opposes the Carolina Cement Company’s (Titan Cement) proposed location.

OPPOSITION TO OLF AT SANDBANKS AND HALE’S LAKE

WHEREAS, The United States Navy (Navy) on January 22, 2008 released a new list of proposed sites for a possible Outlying Landing Field (OLF) to accommodate training for F18 Super Hornet Jets; and that this new list follows a retraction by the Navy of its previous preferred sites; and,

WHEREAS, this new list of five potential sites includes two in northeastern North Carolina, one being in Gates and Hertford counties referred to as the Sandbanks site and another in Camden and Currituck counties referred to as the Hale’s Lake site; and,

WHEREAS, the latter site would impact wildlife populations and associated eco-tourism and resource-based recreation at the federally protected and managed Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and the state protected and managed Merchants Millpond State Park and Dismal Swamp State Park where species include federally protected migratory birds such as snow geese and tundra swan, as well as, bald eagle, black bear, white-tailed deer and cottontail; and,

WHEREAS, this site is a highly flammable peat bog, whereby any crashes and or fuel dumpage could potentially ignite and cause devastating, long-lasting wildfires; and,

WHEREAS, the former site would also impact Merchants Millpond State Park and Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge as well as the Chowan River bottomlands and the Chowan Swamp Gamelands; and,

WHEREAS, the Chowan River bottomlands is distinguishably listed as an Important Bird Area  vital for breeding and migrating neotropical birds including prothonotary and Swainson’s warblers; the Chowan Swamp  Gamelands, one of the most extensive swamp forest ecosystems in North Carolina comprising 10,996 tax-payer purchased acres, managed by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, that teem with black bear, bobcat, river otter, bald eagle and include  federally endangered/threatened flora and fauna such as red-cockaded Woodpecker, Henslow's sparrow,  Rafinesque's big-eared bat, American alligator, and southeastern myotis, grassleaf arrowhead, pondspice, raven's boxseed, and Virginia least trillium; and,

WHEREAS, the Chowan River, the cornerstone for the Chowan Gamelands and bottomlands,  supplies most of the fresh water to the Albemarle Sound, which is part of the second largest estuary system in the U.S. (the Albemarle-Pamlico Estuary.) In 1979, the Chowan became the first river basin in NC to receive the “nutrient sensitive waters” classification. For the past two decades, concerned citizens and scientists have worked to restore water quality. The State’s Natural Heritage Program considers 100 miles of the Chowan and its tributaries significant aquatic habitat because of diverse, rare and vulnerable populations of freshwater mussels. The Chowan is also a critical and vast commercial and recreational fishery; and,

WHEREAS, the proposed Sandhills site would include 435 acres of the Chowan and 1,629 acres of its watershed wetlands thus the North Carolina Division of Water Quality has recommended it should not be pursued and, in fact, this site was de-listed from considerations previously in 2003 due to federally protected species and potential bird “flight safety” concerns; and,

WHEREAS, construction of an OLF at any site, including the Sandbanks and Hale’s Lake sites, will have immediate impacts on 30,000 acres yet additional impacts to wildlife and habitats extending much further due to contributing noise and air pollution factors; and,

WHEREAS, a constant naval operations of 32,000 cycles per year – day and night – will disrupt wildlife populations within the  site contour and entire flight range; and,

WHEREAS, it is documented that F-18s use military fuel designated JP-8 that includes the flame retardant ethylene dipromide, an additive banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1993, and that in cases whereby Navy pilots dump fuel to reduce landing heights and speeds  would, at these two North Carolina sites,  degrade  terrestrial and aquatic wildlife and habitat ; and,

WHEREAS, previous Navy proposed sites have cost taxpayers at least $25 million dollars in the vetting process already and it is not clearly documented in full that the Navy even requires an OLF.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the North Carolina Wildlife Federation opposes the proposed OLF sites at Sandbanks and Hale’s Lake due to the negative and potentially irreversible wildlife and environmental damages they would cause; and that these two sites should be immediately removed from any further consideration now or at any time in the future.

OPPOSE NAVY’S PROPOSED UNDERSEA WARFARE TRAINING RANGE

WHEREAS, The Navy's proposed Undersea Warfare Training Range (USWTR) would have a negative impact on North Carolina's fisheries, economy, and coastal resources; and,

WHEREAS, active sonar poses a significant threat to marine life in part because of the important role that acoustics play in basic functions of marine life and in part because of the great distances over which intense underwater sound travels; and,

WHEREAS, active sonar involves  massive sound  that can flood many square miles of ocean with sound waves of frequency ranges and power intensity which can disrupt the behavior of sea mammals, sea turtles and finfish, including essential behaviors such as  feeding, migratory patterns and reproductive activities, and can result  in beaching and physical trauma, including bleeding ; and,

WHEREAS, the National Marine Fisheries Service believes that the construction and operation of the USWTR could directly and indirectly impact federally managed fishery species; and,

WHEREAS, the North Atlantic right whale is an endangered species, and only 300 to 350 of these animals remain, and the right whale's migration path follows North Carolina's coast, and sightings of right whales have occurred in the vicinity of the proposed sonar range; and,

WHEREAS, sea turtles are particularly sensitive to low-frequency sounds and some species have been observed to surface, startle, and move away from deep-pitched noise sources; and,

WHEREAS, the use of military active sonar has been implicated in mass strandings of whales including the January 2005 stranding of 37 whales, of three different species, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina; and,

WHEREAS, marine mammals, as well as many species of fish, use sound to navigate their migratory paths, to locate each other over great distances for mating, to find food, and to care for their young; and,

WHEREAS, the proposed range location covers "hard bottom" marine habitat, which is vital to North Carolina's reef fish resources; and,

WHEREAS, according to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, seabirds hear in the acoustic frequency range to be used at the proposed USWTR and there are potential impacts to prey resources through use of sonar and loss of hard bottom habitat.

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the North Carolina Wildlife Federation gathered on February 28, 2009, opposes the proposed USWTR due to the aforementioned negative impacts on wildlife and its habitat.

SUPPORT THE CAROLINA THREAD TRAIL

WHEREAS, the North Carolina Wildlife Federation is committed to preserving habitat and connecting people to nature in order to foster awareness and appreciation for all flora and fauna; and,

WHEREAS, the Carolina Thread Trail will contribute to quality of life by weaving together communities via a regional network of trails and greenways eventually connecting fifteen counties and millions of citizens; and,

WHEREAS, many communities in the targeted region have taken a lead in planning and/or building local trails and greenways, and those efforts can be greatly enhanced by being connected to a larger regional network of trails; and,

WHEREAS, trails and their green buffer areas will help improve the quality of the air we breathe by preserving trees and vegetation and by promoting non-motorized transportation, and will enhance the quality of our water through natural buffers and mitigation of storm water run-off, and will protect wildlife corridors; and,

WHEREAS, trails and greenways provide key amenities to neighborhoods and safe areas for our citizens and children to travel, exercise, play and connect with nature; and,

WHEREAS, trails have significant impact on the economic viability of the region through increased levels of tourism, enhanced property values, added jobs related to the construction of and along the trail, as well as enhanced ability to attract and retain businesses to the region due to improved quality of life; and,

WHEREAS, trails and greenways are freely accessible community assets offering opportunities for recreation and exercise to everyone, including children, youth and families, and provide safe places for people to experience a sense of community and create stronger social and family ties; and,

WHEREAS, there is no second chance to protect the Carolinas’ great natural resources in this unique way for our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren, and the cost of these invaluable natural resources will only increase in the future; and,

WHEREAS, private funding is available to communities from the Carolina Thread Trail for planning and construction of regional trails, and this private funding will leverage public funding from federal, state and various sources.

NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the North Carolina Wildlife Federation, gathered February 28, 2009, supports the Carolina Thread Trail and is committed in concept to working with neighboring communities and with the Carolina Thread Trail to plan, design and build a system of trails that will connect our communities, people, natural resources and special regional points of interest for years to come.