National
Wildlife Refuges in Florida Closed as Tropical Storm Ernesto
Approaches
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 29, 2006
Contacts:
Kristi Watkins,
(404) 679-7275
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that 10 national wildlife
refuges in Florida are temporarily closed today as the state braces
for tropical storm Ernesto. These refuges will be closed until
further notice.
All refuges will be re-opened after the danger of the storm has passed,
and any resulting damages or impacts that threaten public safety are
cleared.
The following refuges are closed until further notice:
Archie Carr NWR in Vero Beach;
Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee NWR in Boynton Beach;
Crocodile Lake NWR in north Key Largo;
Florida Panther NWR in Naples;
Hobe Sound NWR in Hobe Sound;
J.N. “Ding” Darling NWR in Sanibel;
Lake Woodruff NWR in DeLeon Springs;
Merritt Island NWR in Titusville;
National Key Deer NWR in Big Pine Key;
Pelican Island NWR in Vero Beach;
The ecological services field office in Vero Beach is also closed. The
Welaka National Fish Hatchery and the ecological services field office
in Jacksonville will close at noon on Wednesday, August 30, 2006.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency
responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife,
plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American
people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge
System which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of
small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates
70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices, and 78 ecological
services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws,
administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations,
restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife
habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their
conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that
distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing
and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
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