Hageman Seeks To End “Eco-Grief” Counseling Program For Distraught Fish & Wildlife Employees

A counseling program for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees purported to be suffering from eco-grief is part of a larger agenda to destroy the energy economy and the U.S. Congress should legislate it out of existence Wyoming Republican Congresswoman Harriet Hageman said.

MH
Mark Heinz

February 28, 20233 min read

Harriet Hageman addresses the 2023 Wyoming Legislature.
Harriet Hageman addresses the 2023 Wyoming Legislature. (Cowboy State Daily Staff)

A counseling program for federal wildlife service employees supposedly suffering from “eco-grief” isn’t just a sham, it’s part of a wider campaign of “wokeism” bent on destroying the energy economy, Wyoming Republican Congresswoman Harriet Hageman claimed early Tuesday. 

During a speech in the U.S. House chamber, she called the counseling program available to some U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) employees “another instance of the insanity of wokeism.” 

She said it’s being foisted by “an elitist cabal of ecowarriors who are paid to destroy the very standard of living that allows them to focus on made-up crises, rather than focus on the jobs they are paid for doing.” 

She was referencing four-hour seminars offered to USFWS employees in the agency’s southwest region, to help them cope with the effects of eco-grief – or anxiety caused by the perception of an existential environmental crisis. The southwest region includes Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma. 

In Wyoming and the surrounding area, the USFWS has a strong presence. Among other things, it’s the lead agency in charge of managing grizzly bears, which remain under federal Endangered Species Act protection in Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. 

APA Says Eco-Grief Is Real 

Despite Hageman’s scathing dismissal, the American Psychological Association (APA) says that “eco-grief,” “eco-anxiety” and similar mental maladies are real conditions that are affecting increasing numbers of people in the face of climate change and environmental destruction.  

“More than two-thirds (68%) of the adults APA surveyed said they had ‘at least a little ‘eco-anxiety,’ or anxiety or worry about climate change and its effects,” according to an APA report. “Nearly half (48%) of young adults ages 18 to 34 said they felt stress over climate change in their daily lives.” 

Stealth Attack On Energy Sector 

Hagman said the eco-grief counseling sessions might seem inconsequential. But she claimed they’re part of a wider pattern of the administration of President Joe Biden and others to undermine and ultimately destroy the fossil fuel economy upon which Wyoming and other states depend. 

“Eco-grief is admittedly a smaller budget item than many other woke programs,” she said during her speech. “That, however, is no reason to ignore what it portends, or the real underlying agenda being pushed by this federal agency.” 

Undermining the energy sector has driven up the costs of gasoline, natural gas for heating and other fossil fuel products, she said. That’s hurt Americans, particularly the poor, she said. 

“I believe there truly is a special place in Hell for people who adopt policies that create energy poverty,” she said. 

Get Rid Of It, Hageman Says 

Hageman said the eco-grief counseling program is a waste of time and taxpayer money and addressed USFWS employees directly toward the end of her speech. 

“For our friends at the Fish and wildlife service, who may be watching this speech, you may want to take that eco grief seminar now, before we legislate it out of existence,” she said. 

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MH

Mark Heinz

Outdoors Reporter