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<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.peer.org_news_news-2Dreleases_vast-2Dfederal-2Dbiological-2Dcollections-2Dat-2Drisk.html&d=AwMFAw&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=SSiOtmyx1QvbM-f5MC3n7aOCamfQmPT5R2Llk7IRmOM&s=ZEpK5Gi8KxvxXKcyt7oLK_1j7mcvTbEZnXz1WNQ7G_4&e=">http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/vast-federal-biological-collections-at-risk.html</a><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Also featured in Greenwire:<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><b><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">USGS: Agency biological collections in danger -- watchdog</span></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">Dylan Brown, E&E reporter</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">Published: Thursday, June 4, 2015</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">An environmental watchdog group accused the U.S. Geological Survey today of shirking its duty to preserve biological collections
in its care.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility filed a complaint with the Interior Department's Office of Inspector
General, which the advocacy group hopes will trigger a review of USGS's management of fossils, plants, animals and cultural artifacts.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">PEER asked Deputy Inspector General Mary Kendall to halt any current or pending decisions regarding USGS biological collections
until a review is complete, noting a repository agreement with the University of New Mexico.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">When the short-lived National Biological Survey was dissolved by Congress in 1996, USGS inherited huge collections assembled
by researchers over the previous decades. The 136-year-old agency took on a new biological responsibilities, but PEER attorney Laura Dumais said the mandate never took, despite the key role USGS plays in ecological research nationwide.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">"The evidence of our ecological heritage is in jeopardy of being lost or discarded," she said in a news release. "After
all these years, it is surprising USGS leadership still apparently suffers from an anti-biology bias."</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">PEER said "the world's foremost earth science agency" lacks a complete or accurate inventory of biological collections,
and also does not have any policies or guidelines on storage or management.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">PEER said USGS policy is aiming to "control growth and costs of collections," putting legacy plant and animal specimens
at risk of destruction or being given away to make room.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">According to PEER, budgetary considerations are trumping scientific value as USGS classifies the bulk of non-mineral collections
as "working collections" that are under no obligation to be preserved.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">Dumais said USGS's governing law is past due for an update that incorporates the holistic nature of the agency's research
and museum mandates. The 1879 Sundry Civil Act references depositing only "collections of rocks, minerals, soils, fossils, and objects of natural history, archaeology, and ethnology."</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">"A maxim of museum management says, 'A collection that is not growing is dying' by which measure the biological collections
within USGS are simply awaiting extinction," Dumais said. "It is past time to set aside the interdisciplinary blinders."</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">In its complaint, PEER said, "While some of the issues raised by this request may seem a tad esoteric, in the minds of
the scientists within the agency they go to the heart of the USGS's scientific mission. The ability to preserve and document the raw material supporting scientific conclusions, and fund collection care is a key component of whether USGS is doing 'good science'
and following accepted professional practices."</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto"><span style="font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#1A1A1A">USGS did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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Andy Bentley<br>
Ichthyology Collection Manager<br>
University of Kansas<br>
Biodiversity Institute<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">Dyche Hall<br>
1345 Jayhawk Boulevard<br>
Lawrence, KS, 66045-7561<br>
USA<br>
<br>
Tel: (785) 864-3863<br>
Fax: (785) 864-5335 <br>
Email: <a href="mailto:abentley@ku.edu"><span style="color:blue">abentley@ku.edu</span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu_&d=AwMFAw&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=SSiOtmyx1QvbM-f5MC3n7aOCamfQmPT5R2Llk7IRmOM&s=zyCUlmAk0mH063riVaWraoPZ-YIVDUdp9y9V4tKyvW0&e="><span style="color:blue">http://ichthyology.biodiversity.ku.edu</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black">SPNHC President<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU" style="font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:black"><a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.spnhc.org_&d=AwMFAw&c=-dg2m7zWuuDZ0MUcV7Sdqw&r=CLFZJ3fvGSmDp7xK1dNZfh6uGV_h-8NVlo3fXNoRNzI&m=SSiOtmyx1QvbM-f5MC3n7aOCamfQmPT5R2Llk7IRmOM&s=OmIfmQfqC831XSBdXqfEo7GAxYcYqXmNgIZPCX_VKuE&e="><span style="color:blue">http://www.spnhc.org</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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