As early as 2002, the White House officially recognized a threat to polar bears existence:
whitehouse.gov July 2002 Even then, it was suspected that Global Warming was the cause but in the treaty with Russia, melting ice is neither targeted nor even mentioned.
Quote:
BBC January 2003 on Global Warming and Polar Bear extinction The polar bear could be driven to extinction by global warming within 100 years, warns an ecology expert.
The animal, which relies on sea ice to catch seals, is already starting to suffer the effects of climate changes in areas such as Hudson Bay in Canada.
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And today, 12/27/2006, headline environmental news:
Quote:
Boston Globe US said to propose polar bear for endangered list
Global warming blamed in plan to be revealed today
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When asked if Bush was going to see Gore's documentary - which specifically cited the threatened existence of Polar Bears - Bush said this:
"Doubt it. But I will say this about the environmental debate: that my answer to the energy question also is an answer to how you deal with, you know, the greenhouse gas issue. And that is new technologies will change how we live and how we drive our cars, which all will have the beneficial effect of improving the environment. And in my judgment, we need to set aside whether or not greenhouse gases have been caused by mankind or because of natural effects, and focus on the technologies that will enable us to live better lives and, at the same time, protect the environment. "
I agree with Bush that the cause doesn't matter as much as the cure but he readily admits we could be doing something about protecting the environment. Could we please put a rush on that plan to create cleaner, better fuels?