INTERESTED PARTIES
California Condor Recovery Team
The California Condor Recovery Team (Team) is an advisory group to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Team includes representatives from all cooperators of the California Condor Recovery Program as well as a broad range of experts and scientists. Cooperators include the U.S. Forest Service, San Diego Zoo/Wild Animal Park, Los Angeles Zoo, Oregon Zoo, California Department of Fish and Game, Ventana Wildlife Society, La Secretaria de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT), National Park Service at Pinnacles National Monument, Santa Barbara Zoo, the Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico City, and many others.
The Team functions as an advisory entity and its job is to provide technical assistance to the California Condor Recovery Program on issues such as rearing and release methodologies, condor biology and behavior, and other scientific concerns. Contributors to the Team include population geneticists, captive-breeding, environmental contaminants experts, and behaviorists. The Team has not officially registered as being in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
California Department of Fish & Wildlife/California Fish & Game Commission
The California Department of Fish & Wildlife (CDFW), formerly the California Department of Fish & Game, is a department of the California Natural Resources Agency. CDFW manages and protects the state’s diverse fish, wildlife, plant resources, and native habitats. CDFW is also responsible for the diversified use of fish and wildlife including recreational, commercial, scientific and educational uses.
The California Fish and Game Commission decides seasons, bag limits and methods of take for game animals and sport fish, and holds other responsibilities include controlling exotic species; establishing/regulating use of wildlife areas, ecological reserves and marine protected areas; listing/delisting threatened and endangered species under the California Endangered Species Act; prescribing terms and conditions for issuance of licenses/permits by CDFW; and revoking or suspending privileges of those that violate hunting and fishing laws and regulations. In 2012, the Commission decided to form a special working group to evaluate the information being relied upon by those who are seeking to ban hunters from using lead-based ammunition in California. The working group is to be comprised of stakeholders and is intended to be a venue for robust and open scientific debate.
California Rifle & Pistol Association
The California Rifle & Pistol Association (CRPA) is a non-profit organization that was originally founded in 1875 to promote organized competitive and recreational shooting in California. CRPA has sponsored pro-hunting legislation in California and has opposed regulatory and legislative changes in that state to the extent new law would negatively impact firearm rights, including hunters’ rights. CRPA has also participated in litigation concerning the expansion or limitation of hunters’ rights and CRPA has brought lawsuits against governmental agencies that have withheld California condor-related information. CRPA has officially registered its opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
The Center for Biological Diversity
The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) is based in Tuscon, Arizona, and is a non-profit membership organization that seeks to protect specific plant and animal species through legal action and scientific petitions. CBD employs approximately 80 people, and about ¼ of that group are lawyers. CBD has offices and staff in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon, Montana, Illinois, Minnesota, Alabama, Alaska, Vermont, and Washington D.C. CBD is a supporter of California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California. CBD has been a plaintiff in hundreds of lawsuits, several specifically concerning issues related to lead-based ammunition.
The Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) refers to itself as “the nation’s largest and most effective animal protection organization.” Its primary mission is to prevent animal cruelty before it occurs, though it also does some animal rescue work. It is organized into 21 departments, including “Animals in Laboratories[,]” “Animal Protection Litigation[,]” “Corporate Support/Business Development[,]” “Hollywood Outreach[,] “Resources for Parents & Educators[,]” “Rural Development and Outreach[,]” “Wildlife Protection[,]” and others. HSUS employs over 600 people, and has a presence in all fifty states. HSUS is co-sponsor of California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Huntingwithnonlead.org/The Institute for Wildlife Studies
Huntingwithnonlead.org is a website-based entity with goals that include the continued existence of hunting opportunities and protecting non-target wildlife. As to the latter, the main focus of the website is connecting lead-based ammunition use to unintended consequences that huntingwithnonlead.org identifies as threats to non-target wildlife and humans. Huntingwithnonlead.org is sponsored by the Institute for Wildlife Studies, a non-profit organization based in Arcata, California. Neither the Institute for Wildlife Studies nor huntingwithnonlead.org has officially registered as being in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Los Angeles Zoo
The Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens (L.A. Zoo) is 133 acres of Griffth Park, located in Los Angeles, California. The L.A. Zoo was founded in 1966 and is owned by the City of Los Angeles. The L.A. Zoo is home to 1,100 animals from around the world and has been successful in its breeding program of the rare California condor. In fact, the L.A. Zoo was an early partner of the California Condor Recovery Program, and one of its main condor-related responsibilities is to treat California condors taken from the wild due to injuries. The L.A. Zoo’s mission is to serve the community by: creating an environment for recreation and discovery; inspiring an appreciation of wildlife through exhibitry and education; ensuring the highest level of animal welfare; and supporting programs that preserve biodiversity and conserve natural habitat.
National Audubon Society/Audubon California
The National Audubon Society was established over 100 years ago, and its current mission is “[t]o conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth's biological diversity.” This nonprofit organization has nearly 500 local chapters worldwide, more than 1,000 employees, and more than 10,000 volunteers. Its net assets and fund balances have in recent years exceeded $400,000,000. Audubon California is a co-sponsor of California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California. Several Audubon chapters in California have expressed support for the bill, though the National Audubon Society did not officially register as in support of or opposition to Assembly Bill 711.
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is a non-profit entity established in 1871, and it has a current membership of approximately four million members. Part of NRA’s mission is to promote and defend hunting as a shooting sport and as a viable and necessary method of fostering the propagation, growth, and conservation, and wise use of our renewable wildlife resources. NRA has sponsored pro-hunting legislation, and has opposed regulatory or legislative changes that unreasonably or disproportionately affect hunters. NRA has also often participated in litigation concerning the expansion or limitation of hunters’ rights, including intervening in cases brought to limit or ban hunters’ use of lead-based ammunition resting on allegations of unintended environmental impacts. NRA has officially registered its opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
National Shooting Sports Foundation
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is the trade association for the firearms and ammunition industry, and has a mission to protect and preserve hunting and shooting sports, and to support America’s traditional heritage and firearms freedoms. NSSF was formed in 1961, and has more than 8,000 members, including federally-licensed firearms manufacturers, distributors, retailers, sportsmen’s organizations, public and private shooting ranges, gun clubs, publishers, and individual recreational target shooters and hunters. NSSF has participated in several recent lawsuit seeking to limit or eliminate the use and availability of lead-based ammunition. NSSF members manufacture over 90% of domestically manufactured traditional ammunition. NSSF has officially registered its opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Natural Resources Defense Council
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) refers to itself as the nation’s most effective environmental action group, with more than 350 lawyers and 1.4 million members/online activists. NRDC’s advocacy covers numerous issues, including a lawsuit it filed in 2006 with the Center for Biological Diversity, and others. That lawsuit basically alleged that the California Fish & Game Commission was violating the Endangered Species Act by allowing hunters to use lead-based ammunition in areas that California condors might access spent ammunition. Ultimately, the lawsuit was settled, in large part because during the litigation, California’s legislature passed a partial lead-based ammunition ban that made it illegal to hunt big game with lead-based ammunition in the “Condor Zone” of California. NRDC has officially registered its support of California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Oakland Zoo
The Oakland Zoo, in Oakland, California, states its mission is to inspire respect for and stewardship of the natural world, while providing a quality visitor experience. It houses more than 660 animals in a 525-acre location. The Oakland Zoo is owned by the City of Oakland, but it is operated by the East Bay Zoological Society, a non-profit organization that manages zoo operations under an exclusive contract with the City of Oakland. The Oakland Zoo recently became engaged with the California Condor Recovery Program and will, starting this year, be available as a treatment and rehabilitation location for California condors. The East Bay Zoological Society has not officially registered as in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Oregon Zoo
The Oregon Zoo is owned by the Metro, a regional governmental agency for the Portland metropolitan area. The Oregon Zoo is sixty-four acres in size, with an annual attendance of approximately 1.5 million. It includes 1,955 individual animals, representing 232 species. Since 2003, the Oregon Zoo has participated in a California condor captive breeding program, intended to increase the number of California condors in the wild by release of captive-born condors, and a new California condor exhibit is set to open at the Oregon Zoo in 2014. The Oregon Zoo focuses on advancing the highest level of animal welfare, environmental literacy, and conservation science while also creating engaging experiences for visitors. Its funding sources include local taxes, zoo admission and concession fees, grants, and the non-profit Oregon Zoo Foundation. The Oregon Zoo has funded some of Portland Audubon’s (a chapter of the National Audubon Society) activities related to avian lead exposure.
Outdoor Sportsman’s Coalition of California
The Outdoor Sportsman’s Coalition of California (OSCC) is a non-profit organization serving sportsman’s clubs and individuals dedicated to preserving outdoor recreation in California. OSCC’s principal activities are to monitor legislation that might negatively impact hunting, fishing and other recreation, and to oppose unwise changes in laws and regulations relating to these activities. OSCC has several thousand members. OSCC has officially registered its opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Project Gutpile
Project Gutpile was a small (est. >15 active members), blog-centered unincorporated association that was based in Santa Barbara, California, at least as of 2010. Project Gutpile advocated for hunters to stop using lead-based ammunition. Based on Project Gutpile’s website, it appears Project Gutpile was most active between 2006 and 2010, though it started in 2002. It is unclear how active the organization currently is. Project Gutpile, along with the Center for Biological Diversity and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, sued the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2010 with the goal of obtaining a ruling that would allow the EPA to regulate lead-based ammunition under the Toxic Substances Control Act, which contains an exclusion for firearm shells and cartridges. That lawsuit was dismissed early in the litigation on procedural grounds. Project Gutpile has not officially registered as in support of or opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Safari Club International
Safari Club International’s (SCI) membership is approximately 53,000 members spread across the world. SCI is a non-profit organization with headquarters in Tucson, Arizona. SCI’s missions are the conservation of wildlife, protection of the hunter, and education of the public concerning hunting and its use as a conservation tool. SCI has often participated in litigation concerning hunting, and recently has sought and obtained intervenor or amicus status in actions seeking to limit or eliminate the use and availability of lead-based ammunition. SCI has officially registered its opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
San Diego Zoo/Wild Animal Park
The San Diego Zoo is located in San Diego, California and is one of the largest zoos in the world, with over 4,000 animals of more than 800 species. It is privately operated by the nonprofit Zoological Society of San Diego and the zoo sits on 107 acres of parkland leased from the City of San Diego. Ownership of all zoo-related assets rests with the City of San Diego. The Zoological Society also operates a Wild Animal Park in Escondido, where California condors are on exhibit. In addition to treating wild California condors brought to the San Diego Zoo and the Zoo’s captive breeding program, the San Diego Zoo works with a partner organization in Mexico where a small population of California condors was introduced in 2003. The San Diego Zoo has not officially registered as in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
The Santa Barbara Zoo is a non-profit organization that operates a thirty-acre zoo in Santa Barbara, California, dedicated to the preservation, conservation, and enhancement of the natural world and its living treasures through education, research, and recreation. The Santa Barbara Zoo includes approximately 600 animals, representing about 160 species. An exhibit called “Condor Country” allows the public to view California condors in captivity. The Santa Barbara Zoo also assists in monitoring condors in the wild in southern and central California. The Santa Barbara Zoo has not officially registered as in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.
Sierra Club/Sierra Club California
The Sierra Club is a nationwide nonprofit organization formed in 1892, with more than 700,000 members. The Sierra Club’s mission is to explore, enjoy, and protect the wild places of the Earth, to practice and promote responsible uses of the Earth’s ecosystems and resources, to educate and enlist humanity in the protection and restoration of the quality of the natural and human environment and to use all lawful means to carry out those objectives. The Sierra Club was a co-plaintiff in a 2012 lawsuit that effectively sought to ban the use of lead-based ammunition on United States Forest Service-controlled land in northern Arizona. The case was recently dismissed. The Sierra Club California has officially registered its support California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California. The Sierra Club has not officially registered as in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711.
United States Fish & Wildlife Service
The United States Fish & WIldlife Service (FWS) is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior, and is dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and habitats. FWS' mission is to work with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants and their habitat for the continuing benefit of the American people. FWS has been a key player in both the hands-on aspects of the California condor recovery and the policy decisions that have guided that effort. FWS is one of two federal agencies (the other being the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) that administers the Endangered Species Act.
United States National Parks Service
For almost 100 years, the United States National Park Service (NPS) has been the caretaker for America’s national parks, which now cover eighty-four million acres. NPS’ mission is to care for the special places saved by the American people so that all may experience America’s heritage. California condors can often be found in certain units of the National Parks system, e.g., Pinnacles National Park and Grand Canyon National Park, so the NPS assists with management issues like retrieving injured animals and nest protection.
Ventana Wildlife Society (VWS) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1977 by a group of private citizens to restore endangered species native to central California. VWS has five full-time staff biologists, who, together with seasonal interns, monitor, track, and research endangered species, songbirds, and butterflies. VWS is the only non-profit in California that is releasing California condors into the wild. VWS has raised money to support a non-lead ammunition program, and other than the hands-on Condor-related work VWS does, its work has generally focused on education, including voluntary non-lead ammunition programs. VWS has not officially registered as in support of or in opposition to California Assembly Bill 711, which, if enacted, would ban hunting with lead-based ammunition in California.