This Fourth of July help save bald eagles in Washington, D.C.

   Bald Eagle photographed by author on the Wisconsin River

This Fourth of July do something to help the bald eagle, our nation’s symbol, which is threatened in Washington, D.C. According to this great article by Faye Fiore from the Los Angeles Times, a pair of bald eagles has nested 1.5 miles from the capitol ever since 2001, and they are the first eagles to nest in this area since 1946. What is threatening the eagles? The Department of Homeland Security plans to build a mega complex near the woods where the eagles are nesting.  The complex itself is not the key threat.  However, there are plans to construct a back road to the complex that will tear down trees the nesting eagles depend on for safety and hunting.  Many fear this loss of habitat could scare the eagles away.

It is highly symbolic and somewhat ironic that the entity that is in charge of keeping America safe is threatening our national symbol in our nation’s capitol on the fourth of July. The eagle was pushed to the brink of extinction due to the widespread use of DDT, a pesticide that made the eggs so thin that they would break under the weight of the mother eagle.

Eagles were on the brink of extinction in the 1970s and 1980s, but since that time have made a remarkable comeback. I have detailed this comeback in Wisconsin in a previous article, and this return in the Lower Wisconsin River Valley is a microcosm for the rest of the nation. The eagle was taken off the Federal list of Endangered and Threatened Species list two years ago.

The Federal Highway Administration will convene later this month to decide on construction of the road. If the road is approved, then the trees near the nesting eagle will come down next year. Many people are probably thinking that since the eagle has made such a remarkable comeback then it is no big deal if habitat for one nesting pair is destroyed.

Conservationists like Rachel Carson worked hard to reverse the trend that nearly caused the eagle to disappear. We cannot get complacent now for if we do then it is possible that what many have worked so hard for could be lost one by one. If these eagles are compromised then it will be that much easier to make decisions that will threaten future eagles. Plus, there is something wonderful about a nesting pair of these magnificent creatures on the doorstep of the White House and the Washington Monument.

As adventure travelers we need the lakes, the woods, the river, the trees, the animals in order to do our thing. Without these entities there will be no place to adventure travel. Therefore, we are stewards of the earth and we must act in order to protect what we hold dear. We also owe it to our forefathers of conservation like Rachel Carson and John Muir to continue to safe guard and preserve our world. I encourage everyone to write their congressional representatives and even President Obama. It is easy to do now that they all have in boxes on the internet. While you are at it also contact the Federal Highway Administration as the fate of these particular eagles seem to be in their hands.  America has always been a country of compromise.  They can still build the complex yet save the trees.  Do something worthwhile this Independence Day and save the bald eagle in our nation’s capitol.

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