In March of 2026, ESA protections were lifted from the Gulf as a result of the “God Squad” decision to grant the oil and gas industry an exemption from ESA consultation requirements.

The God Squad is officially called the Endangered Species Committee and is made up of six permanent members including the Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, and the Army; the Administrators of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); and the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors. A seventh member is designated by the President.

The God Squad was designed to be a measure of last resort when conflicts between needed projects and species protection cannot be resolved. Given what is at stake and that most conflicts arising between species protection and development can be worked out, the God Squad has been very rarely convened. The last convening was in 1992, when the decision was made to overturn protections for the spotted owl. And that decision was later withdrawn after litigation.

In this convening, the God Squad ignored the usual requirements and findings that the extraordinary measure of an ESA exemption was necessary. Without even finding an irreconcilable conflict between oil and gas development and protecting species, the God Squad relied on a never before used “national security” exemption to erase protections.

The seven-member Endangered Species Committee’s unanimous vote to exempt oil and gas development in the Gulf from the Endangered Species Act—allowing oil producers to ignore long-standing commonsense safety practices—sidesteps proven practices to develop energy resources and safeguard threatened and endangered species. National Wildlife Federation press release, March 31, 2026

Without ESA protections in the Gulf, the Rice’s whales’ habitat could be facing devastating impacts and put further stress on the few whales that are left.

“Extinction is an unacceptable price to pay for expediency, especially when long-established, commonsense practices can help energy development and wildlife recovery co-exist,” said Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation. “Endangered species in the Gulf are not impeding our military readiness nor our strategic positions—and allowing harm to them will not make our troops or nation safer. We should be rallying the nation to recover America’s critically endangered species like the Rice’s whale and Kemp’s ridley sea turtles, and we urge oil companies to continue to follow responsible practices that protect wildlife, while we work with Congress and the courts on a responsible path forward.”

Rice’s Whale 101 and Its Role in a Healthy Marine Ecosystem

The Rice’s whale is a baleen whale, which means it is a filter feeder, and feeds on krill and plankton. It’s gray on top, has a pale gray to light pink belly, a uniquely shaped hooked dorsal fin and can grow up to 42 feet long.

Their life span is unknown; however, it’s estimated that the Rice’s whale can live up to 60 years (based on the life span of a closely related whale species). It was recognized as its own unique whale species in 2021, the Balaenoptera ricei. It was previously thought to be a subspecies of the Bryde’s whale.

The Rice’s whale and other whales contribute to blue carbon storage. Whales are efficient creatures; they are able to capture and store atmospheric carbon in their bodies. When they die, they most likely sink to the ocean floor; the carbon is trapped and prevented from being released back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Additionally, whales bring nitrogen and other nutrients to the ocean surface, this process is called “the whale pump.”

Threats to the Rice’s Whale

The Rice’s whale is facing many threats including oil spills, plastics pollution, vessel strikes, ghost gear entanglement, ocean noise, etc.

Oil spills are pretty common in the Gulf and could happen more often with the ESA protections being lifted. Oil can coat the baleen (the filter feeding structure inside the whale’s mouth) making it difficult for the whale to eat, and the whale could even swallow the oil.

According to NOAA, “scientists estimate that 48 percent of Rice’s whale habitat in the eastern Gulf was exposed to oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. And as a result, the whale’s population may have declined by up to 22 percent, and there are likely lingering effects on reproduction and population growth.” Exposure to oil can also cause respiratory issues, increased vulnerability to diseases, skin irritation, and other health impacts.

Other current threats that will most likely increase due to more oil and gas activities in the Gulf include vessel strikes and impacts from underwater noise. There is already a high amount of traffic in the northern Gulf where several commercial shipping lanes coincide with the whale’s territory. In 2009, a female Rice’s whale was found dead in Tampa Bay; it was determined that a vessel strike was the cause of death.

Additionally, shipping and energy (oil and gas) exploration and development activities produce noise underwater. For example, seismic surveys use loud air guns to map the ocean floor for oil and gas.

This underwater noise interferes with the hearing and call frequency range of Rice’s whales. “It is likely that Rice’s whales rely on their hearing to perform critical life functions such as communicating, navigating, finding mates and food, and avoiding predators.”

Check out New York Times interactive graphic about the effects of sonic blasts on the Rice’s whale. Click to view graphic.

Plastic pollution is also a critical threat to the whale’s habitat; Scientists believe between 5-13 million metric tons of plastic entered the ocean in 2010. An estimated 56 percent of whale, dolphin and porpoise species have consumed plastic, according to the Environmental Investigation Agency. Plastic often looks like food, or is ingested accidentally with water and zooplankton, like krill, as baleen whales (e.g., Rice’s whale) feed. As a result, plastic can block these animals’ breathing passages and stomachs, leading to death. Entanglement in ghost gear (abandoned fishing gear) can also impact the Rice’s whale’s ability to swim freely, surface to breath, and eat.

The Gulf’s “dead zone”, the second largest in the world, is a low-oxygen zone, that negatively impacts all marine animals including the Rice’s whales and other cetaceans. 

How You Can Help the Rice’s Whales

• Contact your public official and advocate for the Endangered Species Act. NWF’s Action Fund Advocacy Toolkit provides guidance on the many ways to share your message of support with friends, family, public officials, media outlets, and more.
• Tell your family and friends about the Rice’s whales and the threats they are facing in the Gulf.

Read NWF Blog, Oceans Are the Heart of the Planet, to learn how oceans provide vital support for living creatures, humans and wildlife.

Kids’ Corner with Ranger Rick

• Read: The Ocean
• Read: Who Needs Teeth?
• Watch: Amazing Orcas! Fascinating Killer Whale Facts for Kids
• Watch: Humpback tail slap
• Watch: Motion of the Ocean

Critical minerals are a class of raw materials that according to the Department of Energy “ha[ve] a high risk of supply chain disruption” and or “serve an essential function in one or more energy technologies.” These include minerals such as copper, lithium, and many others. 

Clean energy infrastructure, from solar panels to electric vehicle batteries to wind turbines, requires more critical minerals to manufacture compared to fossil fuel based infrastructure. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), an electric vehicle requires six times the amount of minerals in comparison to a gas powered vehicle and an onshore wind farm requires nine times more minerals in comparison to a gas-fired plant. The IEA projects that given the accelerating pace of clean energy uptake, critical mineral demand could potentially triple by 2030.

Although meeting the rising demand for these materials is challenging, deploying clean energy is necessary to lower greenhouse gases, slow climate change, and secure a safe and healthy planet for future generations. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution from residential energy, vehicles, power generation, agriculture/waste incineration, and industry causes 7 million premature deaths annually. This loss of life is not only unacceptable, it is avoidable.  Expanding clean energy can improve our health and livelihood by reducing harmful air pollution from fossil fuels.  

This fundamental requirement for our clean energy future is even more complex given that the U.S. currently imports the vast majority of these minerals from other countries. Relying on other nations for materials that are so critical to our energy system leaves vulnerabilities if geopolitical conflict or economic uncertainty occur—but the same is true for oil and other imports. Additionally, many of the countries the U.S. imports critical minerals from have lower (or nonexistent) environmental and worker protection standards. 

This need for domestically supplied critical minerals is driving a renewed conversation around domestic mining and processing of these minerals. Supplying our own critical minerals could minimize the risk of price volatility and supply interruptions that we may face from internationally sourced minerals. However, many of these minerals have to be mined and processed, or recycled, before they can be turned into something useful.

Mining operations in the United States must be conducted with environmental and social safeguards to protect our lands, waters, and the communities and wildlife populations adjacent to mining sites. If these extraction processes are conducted with proper permitting to ensure wildlife protections and community input, the U.S. would be able to expand clean energy deployment while also providing a variety of new jobs in the mining and mineral processing sectors. 

Addressing the supply chain challenges are complicated and challenging, but solving these hard problems is both possible and necessary to slow the impacts of climate change.

Find out more about NWF’s work on critical minerals and clean energy here. 

Muir, a conservationist and co-founder of the Sierra Club, was a young man at 29 when he walked, seeking to quench his thirst for botanical knowledge as he traversed roughly 1000 miles. When I reflect on that journey today, is there some motivational truth in his adventure, in that spontaneous act of motion and boldness, that might speak to my heart and soul all these years later? As we seek to conserve nature, and are there lessons from his travels we can learn from?

If you don’t know the story of Muir’s walk, here goes the expedient and simplified version. Muir was injured, recovered and dedicated his life to the study and appreciation of nature. He began in northern Kentucky, in 1867, and walked to the Gulf at Cedar Key, Florida. He traveled across a war-ravaged American South and was a passionate student of botany, hoping to explore and understand the landscapes he passed through.

But the humble mosquito laid him low! It is believed that malaria struck as he entered Florida near Fernandina Beach and was in full force when he reached Cedar Key and the Gulf, where he had to rest for several months. 

Two powerful and transformative things occurred in Cedar Key on the shores of the Gulf: First, he decided that traveling through warm, moist climates was not for him. Originally intending to head to the southernmost tip of South America, his experience with malaria changed his mind. Instead, he went west in search of California’s wilderness and temperate climate. That change in plans changed American conservation and American nature writing forever.

Second, and just as importantly, he developed his version of a philosophy called “deep ecology.” He came to believe, after profound soul searching and reflection, that all of nature had its own intrinsic value separate from its value to humanity.

Nature had its own right to exist. Out of this powerful epiphany was born the American conservation movement. And little old Cedar Key along the Gulf was part of where it all happened.

Muir found boldness, a sense of adventure and faith grounded in a deep passion for the world. It led him to write great works of nature writing, it led him to form the Sierra Club and it led him to invite President Teddy Roosevelt to join him on a backcountry camping trip that eventually led to the creation of Yosemite National Park.

Muir’s sense of adventure, his courage to walk through the natural world not with fear but with curiosity, and his eventual willingness to use the spoken and written word to advocate for all things wild was born in part on his journey to the Gulf. May we find inspiration and guidance today as we seek to do the same.

Learn more about Muir’s “A Thousand Mile Walk to the Gulf” and his time in Florida or visit the Cedar Key Museum State Park to learn more about the Cedar Key Muir visited. 

Joe Murphy is a former Wildlife Policy Specialist for NWF’s Gulf Program. He contributes these posts as a NWF supporter and alumnus. Joe lives along the Nature Coast of Florida. You can follow Joe on Facebook.

The photo accompanying the June news story of a newborn orca L130 is encouraging. Little L130 is surfacing, swimming, bouncing, alive—and most importantly, “appearing well-fed, with visible fat reserves.” This fills us all with hope. 

Though a new calf is here, this latest dispatch comes from the frontline of extinction. We hold our collective breath and hope for this newest addition to the L Pod because the Southern Resident orca are an emblem of an endangered species. This specific population of orca whale was once 200 strong, but has dwindled to just 74, pushing them ever closer to extinction.

Our evolving relationship with marine mammals

I was visiting my old home near Penn Cove, when the news of L130 landed. It’s a bizarre coincidence given that this is the site of a deeply tragic chapter in our relationship with these magnificent Salish Sea denizens. From these tranquil waters, between 1965 and 1973, 45 Southern Resident killer whales were penned, captured and then delivered to marine parks. Tokitae, also known as Lolita, was among the whales airlifted out of Penn Cove and ultimately sold to the Miami Seaquarium.

Tokitae became known worldwide and was the last orca in captivity when she died in 2023. It was her plight that prompted an important evolution in our relationship with these whales and the ethical treatment of them. In 1976, a federal court settlement permanently prohibited the capturing or selling whales from Washington waters. It was an important moment in public opinion that finally rejected the idea of the trafficking of these intelligent whales in service of cheap entertainment.

As Tokitae’s strange life unfolded at the Miami Seaquarium, so did that of the members of J, K L and L pods in her orca family. However, their fight to thrive was shaped by an entirely different force: the pursuit of cheap hydroelectric energy in the Northwest.

Salmon runs hit a wall in the era of cheap hydroelectric energy 

After the construction was completed on the Lower Granite dam in 1975, the fourth on the lower Snake River, fish migration and populations began to suffer. As a result, the Southern Residents, who thrived on Columbia River Basin chinook, began to feel the sting of misguided river management. It was depriving them of their most important food source.   

The impacts to salmon and steelhead populations quickly accumulated when migration routes were blocked and the fast-flowing river was transformed into a series of slack pools of increasingly hot water, fatal to cold-water fish. Climate change accelerated river temperatures and fish kills. Soon—and to this day—the plight of the Southern Resident orca is largely defined by starvation.

In 2018 and again in 2025, it was the orca mother Talequah pushing her dead calves that focused international attention on the many challenges that these magnificent sea mammals face. Top among them is hunger. If we can put a stop to the cruelty of capture and captivity of orcas, couldn’t we also commit to ensuring that they have enough to eat? Dams are replaceable. Salmon are not. Once dams come out, as we’ve seen repeatedly across the country, and most recently on the Klamath, fish populations recover. 

A historic visit and a lesson to be learned

In the fall of 2024, the members of the L pod returned to Penn Cove for the first time in 53 years. Observers saw the whales “pacing,” and “swimming back and forth, near three different sites that were important to the captures.” The orcas’ behavior was deeply moving to residents of the Cove.

As a former resident myself, I’m wondering if the room for healing puts a more important and urgent call for the need to do better for these beautiful mammals. We know this orca mother wants her little calf to thrive. We know they are struggling. We know that they need more food to eat.

On a darkened, windswept beach along the coast of Georgia, a sea turtle nested as we struggled to build our family. The magic, the miracle she shared with us that evening, still resonates through our family today.

When my wife and I adopted our children, it was wild and natural shared experiences that bonded us as a family in those fragile early days. Starting a new family with kids who have experienced trauma, you realize you have no stories as a family yet. You must build them as you experience them and retell them as often as you can.

Nature offered a safe place for us to build a family. We could learn about new places and each other at the same time. We could find the beauty and wonder of nature as we discovered the beauty and wonder in each other. The deep bonds of connection and the natural world saved us.

A trip to Jekyll Island, Georgia and a nighttime Turtle Walk with the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (GSTC) was a first step. It proved a pivotal moment in the evolution of our family.

Our kids begged us to go on the nighttime Turtle Walk on the beach. Their enthusiasm was contagious, and we obliged. We gathered for a program at GSTC. The excitement grew from there. The young guides who would lead the walk described what we might see and captured the magic of what the evening could bring.

As we walked along the open and wild beach all the sights, sounds and smells of a beach at night greeted us. A high tide brought the breaking waves closer. In the gathering cool of the evening, into a brisk wind, we walked. And walked. But nary a complaint was heard.

Suddenly the guide’s radio crackled to life! “Head down the beach to the south end of the island. There is a nesting female near the overlook for the soccer fields. She is nesting right now!”

Our kids were leaping with joy. They hustled us along as fast as we could go, and soon we were there. 

Before us unfolded a miracle of life that had occurred in elemental cycles as far back in the natural history of the Earth as we could fathom. Back into deep time, into geologic times before humanity, known only to the Earth itself.  We were watching evolution in motion.

We stood awestruck and transfixed as the female loggerhead sea turtle laid her eggs. 

Our guides whispered and kept us at a safe and respectful distance. They allowed the children to slowly approach the turtle in small groups. A hush fell over them as they watched the magic of the coast and of the turtle.

We lost track of time as everything condensed into the power of that moment. Soon the winds increased and the flashes of lighting mixed with the rumbles of thunder grew closer. The first cold drops of rain began to fall.  It was time to go.

As we drove back to the hotel our children recounted, over and over and almost breathlessly, what they had witnessed. It was like the recounting of it would extend the magic. 

That night changed us. It is the deep truth. We had a beautiful, powerful, positive shared experience that we could pass around like a sacred object. Soon, we added more of those sacred objects and memories to create a mosaic of love and memory.

That turtle, that beach, that nest, and that trip became part of our journey to wholeness. We owe that turtle a deep and immense debt of gratitude. Many years later, we still tell that story.

I support NWF’s efforts to conserve the marine and coastal resources of the Gulf and South Atlantic. Wildlife depends on large, healthy ecosystems for the full life cycle from birth to breeding age to long life. NWF works hard to ensure lights out on beaches for nesting and to protect effective endangered species regulations in places like the Gulf, so sea turtles are safe as they move across the vast oceans of the Americas.

While NWF does this work for the turtles, it has tremendous benefit for people as well. Our family cherishes this.

We are planning a trip soon to take my granddaughters to that very same spot, that beach bathed in celestial light, and hope that it is magic again. We are returning as the nesting sea turtle did.  Like the turtle we will use our version of natal homing and our collective memory to revisit a place of great importance. The cycle continues.

An edited version of this blog appeared previously in The Invading Sea. Joe Murphy is a native and lifelong Floridian who lives in Brooksville, Florida along the Nature Coast. Joe is a former Wildlife Policy Specialist for NWF’s Gulf Program and submits these blogs as a member, supporter, and alumnus of NWF. You can follow Joe on Facebook.

GSTC is one of the south’s premier sea turtle education and rehabilitation centers. Their Turtle Walks are designed to be exciting, educational, but above all else safe for the nesting turtle. To learn more, visit their website.

The first-ever global analysis of plastic production found that “between 2002 and 2015 we made the exact same amount of plastic that we (humans) made between 1950 and 2002.” And much of this plastic ends up in the environment, including our rivers and oceans, by people littering, illegal dumping, and accidental loss of trash during strong winds or during transport.

Additionally, marine activities are a critical source of plastic waste in the ocean; ghost gear (lost or abandoned fishing nets, ropes, and other gear) is a growing problem. It should also be noted that all the rivers of the world are contributors to plastic pollution as they drain their respective populated land masses.

Plastics in the ocean absorb and release toxic pollutants, and these toxins enter marine food webs when animals accidentally consume plastics. Because plastic lingers in the oceans and waterways for extended periods of time, the threat is not only a continuing toxin threat, but the physical plastic item itself presents a bodily threat to marine life.

Plastic pollution is a critical threat to the world’s wildlife, particularly marine life. Scientists believe about 8 million metric tons of plastic entered the ocean in 2010, and that number has probably increased since then.

Plastic is everywhere and unfortunately will be with us beyond its intended use unless we get serious about waste management strategies which necessarily begin with individuals.

One morning this past spring, I pondered this thought while I was out looking for birds and all the magic and joy they bring us. My trusty binoculars hung from my neck. My skill and luck with birding and fishing are about the same, so I am deeply thankful for anything I stumble across. 

I was reminded of Matthew 6:26 and its call to “look at the birds of the air.” I know there is a deeper and greater meaning to this passage than simply calling on us to look up and take in the wonder of birds in flight, but I enjoy thinking of it as the birder’s passage.

What struck me, though, was the realization that one day we may indeed look for the birds of the air, and many will be gone. Many of the species that we hold dear will have disappeared into the dark night of extinction from which there is no dawn. 

As I observed Endangered Species Day 2026, and contemplated the true meaning of extinction in the context of evolution and natural selection, it was hard not to think of its impact on faith and creation. The moral implications of allowing another species to fall victim to extinction are as profoundly catastrophic as the ecological ones.

I find it hard to differentiate between deep and profound faith and the concept that we have a responsibility to honor and respect, to care for and to cherish creation. The abundance and complexity of the majesty of the natural world is endlessly inspiring. I find inspiration and sustenance of my faith in it, just as I will in Church on Sunday morning. The two threads for me are deeply intertwined.

If you don’t share this view, I respect that completely.

If your passion for conservation is rooted more in a non-faith-based world view then I celebrate your right to follow that path and profoundly appreciate your love of the natural world.

Given the threats the Gulf faces, any ally on the front lines of preservation is a kindred spirit. I seek not to convince you of anything except to continue to advocate for all things wild. I celebrate and appreciate your efforts and hope to join you in solidarity.

I do question the profound hypocrisy of those in power, who lead efforts in Washington D.C. to gut the Endangered Species Act and who speak of their faith and how it guides them, only to recklessly and callously tear creation asunder.

I urge those who would cast the sea turtle, the Rice’s Whale and the other threatened and endangered species in the Gulf into oblivion in the name of oil and gas profits, to consider the moral and theological consequences of their actions.

Can they reconcile their passion for their faith with the wholesale destruction they seek to bring down on creation and the natural world?

Whether you walk the path of dominion or stewardship, there is an inherent responsibility to other species as part of caring for and honoring creation. Extinction at the hands of humanity shows none.

Humanity has assumed the role of being the agents of evolution and extinction. We now decide which species survive or which disappears. That is a greater power than we should have.

But as we have it, we need to be guided by our better angels. We need to adapt to the needs of other species, not selfishly expect them to adapt to ours.

As we ponder the true consequences of extinction and our moral responsibility to those species we have endangered, let us be guided by our higher purpose to seek improvement in the world and a better planet for our children, and for our kindred species.

I choose that as the legacy I hope to leave. I urge you too as well.

And to the leaders who profess adherence to a higher path while endangering the natural world, you must stop. For other species, for our country and as a matter of conscience.

Endangered Species Day 2026 could have been a day of mourning, it could have been a day of remembrance, or a day of reflection. But it can inspire us now to move forward and be a starting point for action and inspire days of recommitment across our great nation to the values of conservation and the commitment to cherish creation.

Joe Murphy is a native and lifelong Floridian who lives in Brooksville, Florida, along the Gulf Coast. Joe is a former Wildlife Policy Specialist with NWF’s Gulf Program. He contributes these blogs to NWF’s Gulf Program as a alumnus and supporter. You can follow Joe on Facebook. Portions of this blog post initially appeared in FAU’s The Invading Sea in an edited and abridged format.

Summer doesn’t mean we need to neglect nature to have fun in the sun. It just takes a few moments from time to time to stop and consider if there is a better option out there. That is why we created the Plastic Free July Bingo Card. Print this card and make strides to do better for yourself and the planet this year. Don’t fret if you can’t get a bingo by the end of July. Just keep working on it ’til you finally get it, then aim for a total blackout!

Let’s talk more about some swaps you can do this year

Say “no” to free items you won’t use. 

We have all been there before. You are at a festival or event, checking out vendors. You are offered stickers, water bottles, beer koozies, hats, and keychains as free marketing swag. It’s okay to say yes to these things IF and only IF you will use them.

However, if you have 20 water bottles in your cabinet at home, you might want to consider skipping out on this item going forward. If the item is going to end up in the trash or in a donate pile, it’s probably safe to say “no” to those items as well. 

Air-Dry Synthetic Clothing 

Why would I want to air-dry my clothing when I have a dryer? Well, let’s start with what synthetic clothing is. It’s anything not made from organic materials, such as cotton, linen, silk, or wool.

Synthetic fibers include polyester, nylon, acrylic, and rayon, and are typically made from fossil fuel-based chemicals, or, as we colloquially call them, plastics. When these fibers heat up in the dryer, the fabric starts to break down, releasing microplastics into the environment. 

Now, you may be thinking, well, wouldn’t this happen on a hot wash too? Yes, but we are in the mindset that the most environmentally friendly purchase you can make is the one you didn’t make, so we will not be encouraging you to ditch all synthetic clothing to go out and buy all new, natural clothing. Wear what you have, but use a new lens going forward. Take care of your clothing so it lasts longer.

Skipping the dryer prevents the clothing from breaking down faster. Repair clothing where possible, then either upcycle it or ethically offload or recycle it. 

Purchase Unpackaged Products 

What if I told you that the tomato you were buying didn’t need to go in that single-use plastic bag? You can keep your fruits and veggies naked, free to roll around as they please (this is how I do it!), or you can get your own reusable cloth bags to put them in. 

“Hey, what about things like meat or bread? Those have to come packaged!”

Actually, they don’t. Well, not in plastic. Meat can be purchased from a local butcher and wrapped in freezer paper (make sure it’s actually plastic-free). Food can also be frozen in glass jars (careful not to fill too tightly), beeswax, stainless steel, and many other container options.

To get bread and other pastries, go out and find a local bakery that makes what you are looking for and will box or wrap the items in paper or cardboard. Not only does this cut down packaging waste, but it also reduces your carbon footprint by buying things locally made and keeps your money in your local economy instead of going to big-box stores. 

The Plastic You Just Can’t Avoid

It’s not the end of the world if there is just something you have to have, whether it’s your favorite food or your dog’s favorite food. Here is where we get to problem-solving. Can it be recycled or reused? Packaging can be reused as trash bags. We love to see a 20 LBS dog food bag reused to collect other trash. If it’s too small to be used as a trash bag, find the best way to recycle it or upcycle it. Researching if a facility in your local community will take it or looking online for services like Terracycle or Ridwell. 

Conduct A Waste Audit

No time better than the present to dive through your own trash. Select a time frame when you aren’t hosting or having a party. Collect all your waste in a designated area. Wash anything that will become smelly or attract little crawling insects. After the designated time frame, conduct a study of what you have thrown out and set some goals on how to reduce your findings.

You can learn more about a waste audit here at plasticfreejuly.org.

Plasticfreejuly.org will also provide you with more ways to reduce your plastic waste. Reducing our plastic waste helps the environment by not only ensuring it’s pristine, but it also prevents plastic from being ingested by wildlife, where injury and death are common outcomes when they interact with plastic. Plastic is also a known hormone disruptor, which can and does affect wildlife and humans.

To read more about the effects of plastic on wildlife, read our blog, Plastic Summer.

To learn more about lowering your waste, consider following Kathryn Kellogg @going.zero.waste, author of 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste, and Ashlee Piper @ashleepiper, author of Give A Sh*t: Do good. Live better. Save the planet, who are among many outstanding humans, trying to show the world easier and simpler ways to decrease waste. 

Drought occurs when an area experiences below-average precipitation over an extended period of time. Some droughts develop slowly over months or even years, while others, known as “flash droughts,” emerge rapidly when extreme heat and low rainfall quickly dry out soils and vegetation. Although drought is a natural climate phenomenon, climate change is amplifying its severity and reshaping how it affects communities, wildlife, and ecosystems.

Drought Across the Nation

Across the South, drought is intensifying water stress and increasing wildfire risk in places not historically associated with large fires. Georgia, a state often considered water-rich because it averages roughly 50 inches of rainfall annually, experienced severe drought conditions in 2026. At the same time, the  Pineland Road and Highway 82 Fires burned more than 55,000 acres. Researchers suggest that Hurricane Helene may have contributed to these fires by knocking down large numbers of trees, creating dry fuel that later intensified wildfire conditions. Events that once seemed disconnected—hurricanes, drought, heat, and wildfire—are increasingly compounding one another in a warming climate.

Drought also affects wildlife. Wetlands, rivers, and streams shrink during prolonged dry periods, reducing habitat for fish, amphibians, birds, and other species that depend on freshwater ecosystems. In the western United States, another form of drought called “snow drought” is becoming more common. Snowpack acts as a natural reservoir, slowly releasing water into rivers and streams throughout spring and summer. But warmer winters are reducing that snow storage. States including Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico experienced significant snow drought conditions in 2026. Less snow means less water available during hotter summer months, increasing stress on cities, agriculture, fish populations, and wildlife habitats. Reduced streamflow can disrupt fish migration and reproduction, while dry vegetation increases wildfire risk.

The Great Plains are also experiencing severe agricultural stress, with drought conditions impacting Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma. Prolonged drought damages crop yields, degrades soil quality, and threatens livestock production. Drought is increasingly being felt and no region is fully immune from its effects.

The Dust Bowl demonstrated how drought, poor land management, and extreme heat can devastate entire regions. Today, climate change, when combined with poor planning policies, may reinforce similar environmental feedback loops that prolong drought and the likelihood of severe climate disasters across the U.S. 

Global Systems and Compound Disasters

Large global climate systems also shape drought patterns. These large-scale climate systems do not act in isolation. They interact with rising global temperatures to influence drought severity, rainfall variability, and the likelihood of cascading disasters. La Niña conditions, part of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), can contribute to drier conditions across parts of the southern and western United States. Scientists are also studying how changes in major ocean circulation systems, such as the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), could shift rainfall patterns.

Climate change is also increasing the likelihood of compound disasters, where one extreme event intensifies another. Although intense rainfall can temporarily ease drought, prolonged dry periods harden soil, destroy vegetation, and leave wildfire ash behind, reducing the ground’s ability to absorb water. When heavy rain finally arrives, flash floods and erosion can follow, causing further habitat destruction, wildlife death, and human displacement.

On July 4, 2025 the Central Texas Hill Country Floods, a drought impacted region, where the Guadalupe River rose roughly 26 feet in just 45 minutes, killing 135 people, destroying homes, and devastating aquatic habitats and species.

To learn more about how natural disasters intensified by climate change are affecting people and wildlife across the United States check out NWF’s Unnatural Disasters Map.

Where We Go From Here

Drought is no longer simply an isolated lack of rain. It is becoming part of a larger web of interconnected climate impacts affecting people, wildlife, water systems, and entire ecosystems. 

Water scarcity is becoming more complex as demand continues to grow. Rapidly expanding hyperscale AI data centers require enormous amounts of water for cooling, placing additional pressure on already stressed water systems in some regions.

Understanding drought as part of a larger interconnected climate system is essential for preparing communities for a hotter, drier, and more unpredictable future.

Stay informed on local, state, and/or federal projects that may be water intensive, such as data center buildouts, and check to see if there are any voting opportunities on your ballot. 

Take a look at NWF’s Action Fund to explore more ways to help protect our wildlife, environment, and one another. 

That principle should not be controversial. If a company profits from extracting resources from public lands, it should also be responsible for restoring those lands when the work is done. Unfortunately, that hasn’t always happened.

Across the country, tens of thousands of abandoned and orphaned oil and gas wells remain scattered across the landscape. Many of these wells leak methane, contaminate groundwater, degrade wildlife habitat, and pose safety risks to nearby communities. In many cases, the companies responsible for drilling either went bankrupt or walked away, leaving taxpayers to shoulder the cost of cleanup.

The bonding reforms adopted two years ago sought to address this longstanding problem by updating outdated requirements that had not kept pace with the true cost of cleanup. For decades, bonding amounts remained so low that they often covered only a fraction of what it costs to reclaim a well site. The reforms helped ensure that companies provided adequate financial guarantees before drilling began, reducing the likelihood that taxpayers would be left holding the bill later.

At a time when Americans are concerned about energy prices and economic stability, it is important to recognize that responsible energy production and strong environmental safeguards are not mutually exclusive. Last year, the United States produced more oil and gas than any country in the world while still generating substantial profits AND charging fair bonding rates. In other words, we have already demonstrated that we can produce energy while protecting the lands and waters that Americans value. We do not need to choose between energy development and conservation. We can—and should—do both.

Repealing these bonding reforms would move us in the wrong direction. It would increase the risk that more cleanup costs are shifted onto taxpayers, while creating new threats to wildlife habitat, water resources, and public lands. It would reward irresponsible actors while undermining companies that already operate responsibly and plan for reclamation costs.

Public lands belong to all Americans. They support wildlife, provide clean water, sustain outdoor traditions, and contribute billions of dollars to local economies. Protecting these lands means ensuring that those who profit from developing them are also responsible for cleaning up after themselves.

Rather than dismantling commonsense safeguards, policymakers should keep them in place to protect taxpayers, hold industry accountable, and ensure that future generations inherit healthy, productive public lands.