Mackenzie Kleinpeter logged into work Friday, thinking her job as a wildlife biologist and oil and gas specialist at the Southwest Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges Complex was safe from recent federal layoffs.
She had heard about the thousands of terminations of probationary employees at the U.S. Forest Service and the rumors that the National Park Service was next. Also in the back of her mind was the strange email earlier in the week offering her a buyout for her job.
She wasn’t even sure if the offer was real.
Then her supervisor called her and asked if she received an invitation to a online meeting.
“I was like, ‘No, what’s happening?’ I checked my email that morning, and there was no meeting, and by 11:50, it said there was a meeting at noon,” Kleinpeter said, “It was a Zoom call where you couldn’t interact, and they were like, ‘Sorry. Unfortunately, you’re all fired.'”
Three others and her were part of around 400 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service probationary employees who were let go in President Donald Trump’s efforts to cut back federal government spending.
She could not wrap her mind around the decision, she said, as she handed her keys over to her supervisor. Her position, which she started in August, came at no expense to the taxpayers; the funding came through oil and gas company fines and fees.
“There was no thought put into it.” Kleinpeter said. “They just cut everyone they could because probationary employees can be fired for any reason.”
But her real worry lies in how and if oil and gas companies dotted across the 200,000 acres, which encompasses the Lacassine, Sabine and Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge, will be appropriately monitored. Now that she’s gone, it’s up to the manager, who she said lacks her specialized training, to help keep the industry in line.
“And she hardly has time to do anything except have the refuge function. There’s gonna be a lot less eyes on the ground there dealing with those oil and gas companies.” Kleinpeter said. “The oil and gas companies are great, but they’re there for profit, and so they do damage to the refuges.”
Kleinpeter reached out to U.S. Representative Clay Higgins to voice her concern over the layoff, she said. He responded by stating that the federal government “must find ways to do more with less,” and that he was confident that seven employees could manage the vast refuge.
The Acadiana Advocate reached out to Higgins, U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy but did not receive immediate responses. The Southwest Louisiana National Wildlife Refuges Complex and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, refused to comment.
The cuts come after years of a shrinking workforce throughout the refuges. The complex used to have more than 30 people on staff; when Kleinpeter arrived, she said there were 12 people, and now it is down to seven. People would leave, and the budget would shrink, making it so they could not rehire.
She said her position will likely come up for rehire but not until the federal hiring freeze is lifted.
Kleinpeter said she used her position to bring back programming for children and community members, which had disappeared over the years.
As of Feb. 15, all scheduled events and programs have been canceled.
“Now, none of those kids will ever learn anything about the environment around here. They’ll never grow up caring about the refuges and when they get older, they still won’t,” Kleinpeter said.
Kleinpeter is calling on residents to reach out to their representatives to voice their concerns.
“The more of us complain the more they can’t just skirt it under the rug.” Kleinpeter said, “Somebody has to be a voice for our region or they won’t care.”
