DCAS Advocacy & Action Alerts
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September 16, 2026: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative will lose authorization & funding at the end of this month if the Senate doesn't renew it. The House has passed the legislation which authorizes it through 2030. The GLRI aims to keep water clean, reduce flooding, & restore habitat. In Indiana, funds & efforts have focused on Hatcher Park and Marshalltown Marsh which are near the Little Calumet River. (Please copy the link to your browser as it will not take you automatically to the Action Alert sign up) https://act.audubon.org/a/glri-2026 This will auto send a letter from you to your Senator. Please sign-up for Action Alerts from the National Audubon Society to stay informed of current legislative issues. https://act.audubon.org/a/action-network |
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By Erik Schneider
Policy Manager Published July 23, 2026 2026 Focus on the Endangered Species Act For more than 50 years, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has used science-based decision-making, planning, collaboration, and sustained investment, to protect birds while providing practical tools that encourage partnership, regulatory certainty, and long-term recovery. A new rule rescinds the longstanding, bipartisan regulatory definition of “harm,” which for decades recognized that significant habitat destruction resulting in the death or injury of protected wildlife could violate the ESA. The definition reflected a fundamental conservation principle: wildlife recovery depends on healthy habitat. For that reason, Audubon, together with more than 160 affiliated chapters and thousands of members and supporters, urged the agency in 2025 to retain the longstanding definition. Audubon’s comments emphasized that conserving and restoring habitat is essential to the recovery and long-term conservation of birds, including Piping Plovers, Whooping Cranes, California Condors, and nearly one hundred other U.S. bird species. In adopting the new rule, the agency did not replace the definition with an alternative standard. As a result, important questions remain about how habitat impacts will be evaluated under the ESA. That uncertainty may make it more difficult for agencies, landowners, businesses, and conservation partners to plan with confidence and could affect collaborative conservation tools, including Habitat Conservation Plans and Candidate Conservation Agreements, that provide regulatory certainty while advancing habitat conservation. Maintaining these approaches will remain important to achieving the ESA’s goals. At a time when North America has lost 3 billion birds since 1970 and habitat loss remains one of the leading drivers of bird declines, we should be making it easier to conserve and restore the places birds and people depend on. What can you do? Contact Senator Todd Young, Senator Jim Banks and Representative Frank Mrvan to ask their support to retain definitions that maintain healthy habitats to protect birds. Statement about Data Centers in Northwest Indiana: The Dunes-Calumet Audubon Society stands in solidarity with community members who are actively engaged in discussions surrounding the rapid and largely unchecked expansion of data centers in Northwest Indiana. Our region's ecosystems already face significant environmental pressures. Continued large-scale development at an unprecedented pace could push these fragile natural systems closer to a critical tipping point. Data centers require substantial amounts of water and energy, placing additional strain on local watersheds and natural resources. Their extensive physical footprint can also fragment and eliminate important wildlife habitat, disrupt food webs, and reduce biodiversity. Without thoughtful planning and strong environmental safeguards, this development boom risks accelerating habitat loss, degrading ecological health, and contributing to the broader challenges posed by climate change in our own communities. Addressing these concerns requires collaboration among residents, conservation organizations, community leaders, and policymakers. We encourage our members and supporters to stay informed, participate in future public meetings, and advocate for responsible development practices that prioritize environmental stewardship. Together, we can promote meaningful protections, including water-conservation standards, preservation of critical wildlife corridors, and land-use policies that balance economic growth with ecological sustainability. We also support investments in renewable energy, bird-friendly building designs, and other innovative solutions that reduce environmental impacts while allowing technological progress to continue responsibly. A sustainable future is one in which economic development and environmental conservation work hand in hand. By protecting the natural resources, habitats, and wildlife that make our region unique, we can ensure that future generations inherit a healthy and thriving landscape. For additional information and opportunities to become involved, we encourage interested individuals to follow and engage with our partner organization, Just Transition NWI (https://www.jtnwi.org). Their organizers are helping educate the public about the potential impacts of large-scale data center development and ways community members can participate in the decision-making process. Let's work together — for our communities, our natural resources, and the birds. Sincerely, Dunes-Calumet Audubon Society |
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Photo by Gil Patmore
Indiana updates: Indiana Wetlands Campaign
Federal Updates: Recovering America's Wildlife Act While providing important funding for conservation during the last session, Congress missed an opportunity to invest in state-level wildlife recovery efforts by failing to include the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act (RAWA). RAWA would have helped state wildlife agencies proactively conserve vulnerable species. Click here to learn more. MBTA
GROWING CLIMATE SOLUTION ACT Read more about the Growing Climate Solutions Act here. Restoring the Great Lakes for Birds and People |
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