Endangered Species Act

[Seaboard]

In November of 1999, USFWS and NMFS proposed the Gulf of Maine Atlantic Salmon DPS for listing as an endangered species under the ESA, finding that the DPS was in danger of extinction.

Today, the survival of Atlantic Salmon of Maine, an aquaculture company operating in the Gulf of Maine, is seriously threatened by entities using (or misusing) the ESA as cover.

Are there any other instances of a company being entirely put out of business due to an endangered species listing?

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The Interior Department claims that the Endangered Species Act is broken, in large part because of litigation challenging the agency's designations. The question to be addressed is whether
the litigation is a sympton or the disease .

More specifically, is the litigation the result of frivolous claims on the part of private claimants or is it a result of the agency taking
positions which is not based upon sound science?

Read press coverage
http://espn.go.com/outdoors/conserv...29/1560689.html

Views? Post your regulatory action of the day.

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A Bush Administration task force is advocating a plan that would ease the way for land development projects to get started. The group says that the 1970 National Environmental Policy Act allows eco studies to drag on too long.

“The Bush administration has blamed NEPA for bureaucratic gridlock. Signed into law by President Nixon in 1970, NEPA is used by environmentalists to limit development on public land and force protections for endangered species.”

They propose a broader criteria for deciding whether a developer can begin a project without any environmental analysis or prevention. Without independent review of what impact development could have on wildlife, environmentalists will lose the power to protect endangered species. That has many critics very worried about the future of protected animals.

“That's the one section of the report that gives me most pause," said Smythe. "Why do we need to open the door to more categorical exclusions?"

To learn more go to: http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/6852762.htm

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EPA laws block energy developers from drilling on protected land. As a result natural gas prices have increased a whopping 700% since 1999.

“We’re not running out of natural gas, and we’re not running out of places to look for natural gas,” says Keith Rattie, president of Questar, an energy developer. “However, we are running out of places we are allowed to look for gas.”

Environmentalists are also invoking the Endangered Species Act to prevent drilling companies from extracting gas from areas where protected animals live. Energy Industry reps say some companies may be forced to shut down this winter to ensure that homeowners and apartment dwellers have heat.

Experts say it may take another crisis like the U.S. saw in the 1970’s to force the government to seek other energy sources.

To read more link to: http://www.americandaily.com/item/1949


EPA laws block energy developers from drilling on protected land. As a result natural gas prices have increased a whopping 700% since 1999.

“We’re not running out of natural gas, and we’re not running out of places to look for natural gas,” says Keith Rattie, president of Questar, an energy developer. “However, we are running out of places we are allowed to look for gas.”

Environmentalists are also invoking the Endangered Species Act to prevent drilling companies from extracting gas from areas where protected animals live. Energy Industry reps say some companies may be forced to shut down this winter to ensure that homeowners and apartment dwellers have heat.

Experts say it may take another crisis like the U.S. saw in the 1970’s to force the government to seek other energy sources.

To read more link to: http://www.americandaily.com/item/1949

[admin]

Hawaii is an ideal site to test biotech agricultural products; its constant warm temperatures and ample rain make it easy to grow crops under somewhat controlled conditions. It is for this reason that a number of firms experiment with their biotech products in Hawaii. On the other hand, a number of special interest groups are concerned that the biotech products could hurt endangered species.

Consequently, activist groups have developed, and are implementing a program to first secure all relevant data and second, use it to bring appropriate enforcement actions. This program should be watched closely because of the impact it could have on the biotech national biotech program.

"Local concern about GM crops grew in Hawaii after the US Environmental Protection Agency cited biotech leaders Dow AgroSciences of Indiana and Pioneer Hi-Bred International of Iowa for not following regulations in their Hawaii plantings to segregate GM corn from other corn. Both settled with the government in December 2002 without admitting wrongdoing. Dow paid a fine of $8800 and Pioneer paid $9900."


Read article

http://www.biomedcentral.com/news/20030730/04

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The Fish and Wildlife Service has invoked the Endangered Species Act to stop a project that was in planning for some seven years.

“A seven-year, multi-million-dollar effort to restore the Bahia lagoon might be dead in the water, according to federal and state officials, who maintain that dredging the lagoon would threaten at least one endangered species”.

Is there a better way to handle this process?

Click to article

[admin]

The Commanding General of the Marine training center, Camp Pendleton, has testified to Congress that environmental laws are constraining the effectiveness of the military training program. The chief culprit is, in their opinion, the Endangered Species Act.

The Marines state that the uncontrolled growth outside the base is placing enormous pressure to preserve species on the base. The military supports this claim with a documented study.

The Marines are taking thier fight to the Congress---asking for
legislative relief.

CyberActiivst.US has seen the focus on the Endagnered Species Act coming for a number of months; consequently it is being covered extensively in this fourm.

The outcome of the many debates on the Endangered Species Act will be far more significant, in our opinon. then many of the other environmental skirmishes on Capitol Hill.

Distroying critical elements of the food chain is no trivial matter, nor is constraining the ability of our troops to provide our most basic freedoms. The debates are always more focused when real world issues are examined outside of Washington, thereby leading to our focus on discussing national issues in terms of impacts outside of DC.

Comments? Post your views on the regulatory event of the day.

Read the article in the North County Times:

http://www.nctimes.net/news/2003/20030530/60931.html

[admin]

The Endangered Species Act requires federal agencies to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service to determine the effect the agencies' actions may have on threatened or endangered species. This ESA consultation process has not worked well. It is slow, cumbersome and expensive. It is in large part implemented by court orders in lawsuits brought be environmentalists against the Services. Much, but not all, of the litigation concerns the Northwest where salmon and trout are at issue. The Senate Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Water asked GAO to investigate and report on problems with the consultation process and on ways to solve them. GAO gave an interim report in June which is not encouraging. GAO acknowledged that streamlining project reviews had improved the consultation process; however, everyone involved was still dissatisfied and concerned. One major problem is lack of a shared understanding between the Services and action agencies on what constitutes a complete biological assessment, leading to multiple requests for information. There is also confusion and disagreement as to divisions of authority. Environmental groups complain that they are excluded from the decision-making process, and can only have a voice in court. The Services and action agencies in turn complain that they waste time trying to litigation-proof their decision. The Services also emphasize that, despite some staff increases, they still do not have adequate resources for all their consultation duties. Winston does not have any magic solutions to the serious problems with this important regulatory process. However, Winston does suggest that if Congress wants to retain the current ESA consultation process, then Congress should allocate the resources necessary to do the job. Otherwise, Congress should change the process.

Click to read GAO's testimony.

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d03949t.pdf

(Extracted from WatchDogWatch.org)

[admin]

A proposal by the Bush Administration to amend the rules governing the Endangered Species Act is under fire.

"The new policy marks a dramatic break from past practice. Rather than interpreting the Endangered Species Act to protect foreign species from exploitation and slaughter, as previous administrations have done, Bush Administration officials assert that encouraging such actions can contribute to the species' ultimate survival."

Read article

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/mariner/20031014.html

[admin]

The ESA has been a controversial Act since it is passage. In fact, according to some authors, it in itself in endangered.

"Many will second the FWS official who recently called the ESA a "broken law." The 30th birthday of this woolley-headed statute would be a time for celebrating — if Congress recalls it for a major overhaul."


Read article : http://www.vvdailypress.com/cgi-bin/newspro/viewnews.cgi?newsid1071152216,97893,

[admin]

The powerful Chair of the House Resources Committee as targeted the Endangered Species Act for a series of modifications on a piece-by-piece basis.

"It's the death-of-a-thousand-cuts approach," said Bart Semcer, a fish and wildlife policy specialist for the Sierra Club. "They know that they can't win by adopting a wholesale approach to attacking the Endangered Species Act, so they're launching sneak attacks, small pieces of legislation that they're hoping the public won't notice in order to undermine the law."

Read article http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...-2004Jan12.html

[admin]

The Congresss again is looking at ways to amend the Endangered Species Act. Another group of amendments are under consideration.

"Walden's legislation, the Sound Science for Endangered Species Act Planning Act of 2003 (HR 1662), would require that greater weight be given to field-tested and scientifically peer-reviewed data under the ESA. Walden's testimony was delivered today before the Resources Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, which held a hearing today entitled, "Issues Affecting Jobs in the Forest Industry.

http://www.bend.com/news/ar_view%5E3Far_id%5E3D13553.htm