The proposal by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to expand hunting and fishing on wildlife refuges and hatcheries includes our beloved Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.

This shortsighted political stunt was launched by former Department of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke with the National Rifle Association, hand-picked sportsmen (aka hunters and trappers), shooters and like-minded politicians to counter reports that hunter numbers had dropped by 2.2 million between 2011 and 2016. It included Zinke’s Secretarial Order 3356 to expand hunting and fishing on Department of Interior lands.

The bosque was created in 1939 to provide “inviolate sanctuary for migrating waterfowl.” It is the goose that lays the golden eggs, a conservation rock star that attracts some 200,000 nature lovers and ecotourists annually to enjoy the inspirations of hundreds of thousands of migratory birds and other wildlife. The healthy waterfowl populations also create countless hunting opportunities…