The department, in deciding to list the bear as threatened, will cite studies by its own scientists that the decline of Arctic sea ice off Alaska and Canada could result in two-thirds of the polar bears disappearing by mid-century, said federal officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been announced.
Interior Department spokesman Shane Wolfe declined to comment ahead of the formal announcement.
Inhofe Says Listing of Polar Bear Based on Politics, Not Science
