Indiana’s wetlands and birds need your help! This week, a surprise amendment aimed at further reducing wetlands protections was added to Senate Bill 414, an unrelated bill that deals with storage of residential sewage.
Indiana has already lost more than 85 percent of its historic wetlands, causing birds like the Black Tern and Yellow-headed Blackbird to disappear from the state. If passed as is, the bill would loosen restrictions on how wetlands are classified to further roll back their protections across the state.
This bill comes on the heels of a report from the Indiana Wetlands Taskforce, which emphasized the need to do more to protect Indiana’s wetlands.
Vulnerable birds can’t afford to lose any more wetlands, and neither can Hoosiers. When we lose wetlands, we lose the natural benefits they provide including critical wildlife habitat, protecting communities from flooding and drought, and keeping our water clean.