He mentioned thanks to FWS, USGS, ABC, but no mention of Audubon, the 
Nature Conservancy, or other bird organizations interested in protection of 
bird habitat.  No mention of MOS!  Did any Osprey readers attend?  It would 
have been interesting to be there, but I don’t think there was any prior 
knowledge of it with the MD birding public. The video was interesting to see!

Anyone who is concerned about the well-being of migratory birds and the 
habitats they need should carefully get informed about some of the initiatives 
he mentioned, and get involved to the extent practical.  The concept of 
recovery credit trading (see excerpts below) sounds like pollution credit 
trading.  Some polluters can buy credits to make their business compliant with 
fed or state air quality laws, so they can still pollute in order to operate more 
economically.  What he does not say or explain is what is driving the need 
for “recovery credits” to begin with?  Potentially (and I assume this is the 
point) it is to allow developers or industry to develop private lands with critical 
or otherwise significant bird habitats, that they would otherwise not be 
allowed to develop, or else would have to pay for more expensive mitigation to 
get approval.  This sounds good at first, but if you understand the tradeoff, 
it’s a scary concept:  “The good news is that Corporation XYZ agreed to buy 
1,000 recovery credits to mitigate for the 100 acres of endangered bird 
species habitat that will be lost, but (in fine print) the bad news is …”.  Often 
these deals do not replace oranges with oranges; it is an opportunistic and 
economical solution, rather than a science-based one.

He also asked the FWS to produce a “State of the Birds” report by 2009 (see 
excerpt below).  In the spirit of "Cooperative Conservation:, I HOPE THE MOS 
and other ornithological organizations WILL BE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE in either 
preparing this report or (peer) reviewing it prior to its release.  62% (see 
below), and the status of 5 species improved are not much for the U.S. to be 
taking credit for; let’s hope there's a BIG improvement!

Here are the excerpts, verbatim from the White House web page’s news link 
for 10-20-07: "Fact Sheet: Improving Habitat for Our Nation's Migratory Birds 
President Bush Discusses Cooperative Conservation Steps For Migratory Bird 
Habitat In The U.S.":

“The President announced that the Administration will put forward next week 
an innovative policy called recovery credit trading, which will provide a new 
tool to help in habitat conservation. With this policy, landowners who improve 
habitat for birds and other species will earn recovery credits that they can 
sell. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service organized a pilot project using this 
approach to conserve warblers and vireos in Texas, and this new policy will 
formalize this practice for recovering species.”

“The President has asked Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to produce 
a "State of the Birds" report by 2009. To be effective in protecting migratory 
bird habitats, we must measure to ensure we have the best possible data 
about our bird populations. Accordingly, this report will chart our progress, 
identify species that need additional protections, and help us bring more of 
America's bird species into a healthy and sustainable status.”

“Since 2004, the Interior Department has improved the status of five 
migratory bird species and helped ensure that 62 percent of our Nation's 
migratory bird species are at healthy and sustainable levels. The conservation 
actions announced today will start the Fish and Wildlife Service toward 
improving the status of five more species over the next five years.”

Cheers-
Jeff Shenot
Croom MD