Zoo Atlanta Wants Help To Keep Pandas

Zoo Atlanta officials announced Wednesday morning that they will be launching a grassroots campaign to raise money to keep the giant pandas in Atlanta.

Zoo officials announced they are hoping to raise $500,000 from the public in order to keep the pandas in Atlanta for another five years.

Zoo officials said they are attempting to negotiate with China and that preliminary negotiations indicate Atlanta may be able to keep the pandas for another five years for $2.5 million.

PANDA CAM: Zoo Atlanta

Officials said $2 million in funding sources have already been identified.

The Web site www.GiveSoTheyStay.org has been launched in the hopes of raising the extra $500,000. The deadline would be the end of 2009.

PAM MARTIN: Zoo Atlanta Wants Help To Keep Pandas

The zoo's 10-year lease with China ends this year, an agreement that costs the zoo about $2 million a year, including $1.1 million in loan fees.

Zoo Atlanta is one of just four U.S. zoos to display giant pandas.

Couple Lun Lun and Yang Yang have had two cubs since coming to the city in 1999. Mei Lan was born in 2006, and cub Xi Lan was born last fall.