STATEMENT: CAP’s Nicole Gentile Urges 30×30 Conservation Plan To Prevent More Extinctions
Press Contacts
Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared 23 species extinct, including the ivory-billed woodpecker. In response, Nicole Gentile, senior director for Public Lands at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:
The rapid loss of our natural spaces, coupled with the impact of climate change, is pushing more species into extinction every year. That’s why it’s critical to conserve 30 percent of the nation’s lands, waters, and ocean by 2030, a goal also known as 30×30. Our country loses a football field’s worth of natural areas to development every 30 seconds. Protecting 30 percent of our land and water would reduce extinctions and protect our food supplies, drinking water, and clean air.
Related resources:
- “The Biden Administration Is Fulfilling Its Conservation Promises in the First 100 Days” by Jenny Rowland-Shea
- The Green Squeeze: America’s Nature Crisis, by Matt Lee-Ashley, Jenny Rowland-Shea, and Ryan Richards
- “Powering America’s Economic Recovery by Protecting and Restoring Nature” by the CAP Conservation Team
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at shananel@americanprogress.org.