Polar Bear to Be the First Species Protected Against Global Warming

By Julia Bonelli

According to a report on Sunday, the U.S. Interior Department is considering the option to list the polar bears as an endangered species, a fact that might mark the first time a species is listed as threatened to extinct mainly due to the global change.

The Los Angeles Times reported that, since the global warming is damaging the Arctic habitat, the government should react and protect the species that live there. Recently, growing fears that polar bears might be close to extinction have put pressures on the Bush administration for the species to be extended federal protections.

"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others," said Kassie Siegel, an attorney with the non-profit Center for Biological Diversity. "And then there is the polar bear."

The newspaper also said that if the planet continues warming at the same pace, during the next 40 years we could face the extinction of around two thirds of the polar bear population.

If the polar bear would be listed, the government should then protect the bears that live in Alaska, which is the only American territory where the species exists.

When asked weather listing the polar bear could be used to stop the construction of a new power plant in Oklahoma City, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director H. Dale Hall responded: "The Endangered Species Act is not the vehicle to reach out and demand all of the things that need to happen to address climate change."