Tell The Government To Protect Polar Bears Instead Of Letting Them Be Slaughtered

Final signature count: 158

158 signatures toward our 30,000 goal

In October 2026, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finalized a rule authorizing oil and gas companies to harm, harass, and kill polar bears and Pacific walruses in Alaska's Beaufort Sea — as long as those actions are deemed unintentional. The authorization runs through 2031.^1,2 For two species already in serious trouble, five years of legal cover for industrial disturbance is not a minor accommodation. It is a threat multiplier.

What "Incidental Take" Actually Means

The Marine Mammal Protection Act prohibits harming marine mammals without federal authorization — but it allows exceptions for harm that occurs as a byproduct of otherwise legal activity. This rule hands that exception to the oil and gas industry across a wide Arctic footprint, covering exploration, construction, and production operations.² Every one of those activities generates noise, physical disruption, and industrial traffic in the habitat polar bears and walruses depend on to survive.

The stakes are concrete. Pregnant polar bears dig dens in coastal snowpack to give birth and nurse their cubs through winter. Industrial activity near these sites can cause mothers to abandon newborns — or result in bears being crushed by equipment.⁶ The proposed framework that became this rule would have authorized exactly that kind of disturbance near North Slope denning areas, including risks to cubs.^6,7 Conservation groups warned the final rule gives industry a blanket shield rather than a narrowly tailored limit on harm.^4,5

Species Already Fighting to Survive

The southern Beaufort Sea polar bear subpopulation has been declining for decades. Shrinking sea ice forces bears to travel farther for food and spend more time on land — directly in the path of North Slope operations.¹ The rule compounds that pressure rather than buffering against it.

Pacific walruses face their own crisis. As sea ice disappears, larger numbers crowd onto Alaskan beaches. Aircraft, ships, and drilling noise can trigger stampedes at these haul-out sites. Calves are most vulnerable — easily crushed or trampled in the chaos.^1,5 This rule authorizes the very activities that produce that chaos, for five years running.

Losses That Compound Over Time

Both species reproduce slowly. Polar bears raise one to two cubs every few years. Walruses reach reproductive maturity late.³ Harm that looks incidental at the individual level accumulates at the population level — and the damage extends well beyond the 2031 expiration date of this authorization. The rule also runs parallel to the broader administration push to expand Arctic energy development, with the Beaufort Sea at the center of that agenda.³

The FWS Can Still Reverse Course

The Fish and Wildlife Service retains the authority to rescind this rule. That decision has not been made permanent. It is a policy choice — and it can be changed. These animals cannot petition their government. We are doing it for them.

Sign the petition now to tell the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to rescind this rule and replace it with protections that genuinely limit harm to polar bears and walruses in the Beaufort Sea.