Andrew Wetzler
andrewwetzler.bsky.social
Andrew Wetzler
@andrewwetzler.bsky.social
Working to save nature @NRDC — all opinions my own
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
The Trump administration’s plan to open over a billion acres of U.S. oceans to offshore drilling will increase climate-warming pollution, endanger marine life and coastal communities, and raise the risk of catastrophic oil spills.
Could offshore drilling ruin America's coastlines? Some are worried.
The Trump administration's plan to expand offshore drilling over more than 1.2 billion acres of ocean worries coastal residents, tourism industry.
www.usatoday.com
November 30, 2025 at 6:20 PM
It’s been an extraordinarily bad week for wildlife in the United States: in a few short days the Trump administration moved to destroy wetlands, accelerate logging, and drill for oil off our coasts and in the Arctic. They laid their cards on the table and the contempt for nature is palpable.
In One Week, Trump Moves to Reshape U.S. Environmental Policy
www.nytimes.com
November 22, 2025 at 11:50 AM
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
President Trump wants to expand offshore oil and gas drilling across more than 1.2 billion acres of U.S. waters. Opening up California, the Gulf of Mexico, parts of Florida, and large areas of Alaska to drilling puts coastal economies, communities, and wildlife at risk.
November 20, 2025 at 9:43 PM
I knew it was coming. It’s still shocking. The Trump administration is taking away protections from up to 85% of wetlands. The result? They will be drainned, dug up, and filled with dirt. Wetlands filter our drinking water, they help prevent floods and droughts, they provide habitat for wildlife.
E.P.A. Rule Would Drastically Curb Protections for Wetlands
www.nytimes.com
November 18, 2025 at 12:48 AM
In 1947 Aldo Leopold wrote about the passing of another species of bird from this world: “It is a century now since Darwin gave us the first glimpse of the origin of species. We know now what was unknown to all the preceding caravan of ­generations:…” (cont.)
Officially Gone: Slender-Billed Curlew, Once-Widespread Migratory Bird, Declared Extinct By IUCN
A trio of marsupials has also fallen into extinction.
www.iflscience.com
October 15, 2025 at 12:22 AM
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
The Trump administration wants to open 13.1 million acres of public lands to coal mining—part of their broader attack on conservation safeguards. Tell the administration that public lands should be managed for people, wildlife, and future generations. https://on.nrdc.org/4mR4wOU
October 6, 2025 at 5:49 PM
The IUCN's World Conservation Congress only happens every four years and so it's an important moment for governments, scientists, and advocates to come together and discuss the threats facing nature. At @nrdc.org we are sending a team to fight the places, plants, and animals most at risk.
Aligning Global Action for Nature, Wildlife, and People at the IUCN World Conservation Congress
The outcomes from this international forum will set the stage for key milestones and continue building on momentum that urge governments to commit to taking action for the planet and its people.
www.nrdc.org
October 6, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
In 2019 we had at least 6 Welcome Swallows living around my home. Now there's one. I'm observing this trend everywhere. We're losing small aerial insectivores because we're losing our insects. I urge everyone to keep records of Swallow and Martin numbers in localities. (image: Clinton Wood) #nature
October 4, 2025 at 6:15 AM
Is this a tell that the Trump administration fears it may be on the losing side of the shutdown argument? One of the first things the Clinton Administration did was let the Parks close, in part to make the impacts of a shutdown more visible to people.

subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
E&E News: National parks will remain mostly open in shutdown
The Trump administration plans to tap park fees to pay for skeleton crews of staff.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 30, 2025 at 11:23 PM
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
Conservation sssssuccess! 🐍

16 years after Smooth Snakes were reintroduced to a Devon site, surveys last year recorded 39 individuals, a 25% jump on the previous high of 31 in 2023.

www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happen...
September 30, 2025 at 9:59 AM
This is obviously the answer, as it is (or was) in the Chernobly exclusion zone, where wildlife also thrived. It’s not that radiation is ok for animals, it’s just way way better than a lot of human disturbance: “The area is also fairly isolated from human activity because of the chemicals”
E&E News: Scientists find Baltic Sea marine life thriving among WWII explosives
It's the latest example of wildlife flourishing in polluted sites. Previous research has shown shipwrecks and former weapons complexes teeming with biodiversity.
subscriber.politicopro.com
September 26, 2025 at 7:43 PM
I’m looking forward to heading back to my hometown for climate week. Going home always reminds me of how much progress we’ve made —but these days it also reminds me of how quickly that progress could be lost.
When it comes to the environment, memory is a fragile thing
The building I grew up in had a garbage incinerator in the basement. Every Tuesday the staff would burn our trash, and I loved to open the shoot in the hall and peek at the glowing embers racing up th...
www.linkedin.com
September 19, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Reposted by Andrew Wetzler
"We probably are documenting a species that's on its way out. There are countless other species that are probably not going to be recognized before they go extinct."

Plants like the wooly devil depend on "good rain years," which are expected to become more rare thanks to climate pollution.
Meet the 'wooly devil,' a new plant species discovered in Big Bend National Park
The plant, formally known as Ovicula biradiata, is especially notable for being the simultaneous discovery of a new species and genus. It was found with help from the community science app iNaturalist...
www.npr.org
February 27, 2025 at 12:33 PM