Hello VAWP Members and Other Interested Parties!
Please join the Virginia Association of Wetland Professionals (VAWP) for a FREE webinar this Wednesday, March 3, 2021 from 12-1pm.
Becky Gwynn, Assistant Chief, Wildlife Division at Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources will present on:
Permitting the Incidental Take of Migratory Birds in Virginia
A bit about the Speaker and Presentation:
Becky Gwynn is Assistant Chief of the Wildlife Division of the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. She has worked for the Virginia DWR for 34 years in program and senior leadership roles. She has extensive experience in aquatic and terrestrial nongame and endangered species management and conservation in Virginia, including the development of legislation, policy and regulations associated with nongame and endangered species. Becky led the development of the Virginia Birding and Wildlife Trail in the early 2000s and the development of Virginia’s first Wildlife Action Plan, a congressionally-mandated document identifying threats to and necessary conservation actions for 800+ species of greatest conservation need. Most recently, she led efforts to relocate Virginia’s largest seabird colony from the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel islands to a more suitable location. Becky is also the staff lead for the draft regulations to establish the first-in-the-country state permitting program for the incidental take of migratory birds in the absence of federal protections under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Becky received her B.S. in Biology from the College of William & Mary and her M.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Science (Wildlife Option) from Virginia Tech.
Most recently, Becky led efforts to relocate Virginia’s largest seabird colony from the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel islands to a more suitable location. She is also the staff lead for the draft regulations to establish the first-in-the-country state permitting program for the incidental take of migratory birds in the absence of federal protections under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. In a statement given on February 14, 2020, Governor Ralph Northam announced that “[t]he Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) will develop a regulation to define and permit incidental take of migratory birds for major commercial, industrial, and construction projects in the Commonwealth. This rule would make Virginia one of the first states to “backstop” recent federal rollbacks of longstanding migratory bird protection.” Since the announcement, the DWR has been working on a draft of a regulation that would provide critical protections to our bird species at the state level.
This webinar will be hosted by AECOM using Microsoft Teams. Thank you, AECOM!
To join the webinar, please use the link below at the time of the scheduled event:
March 3rd VAWP Webinar Access Link – Migratory Birds ß WEBINAR LINK
If the above link is not working, please use the Microsoft Teams Webinar Access Link below:
Please feel free to pass this along to other interested parties and we hope you all can make it!
