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SOUTHWEST CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL
DIVERSITY
http//www.sw-center.org
#181
4-22-99
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§
USFWS RESPONDS TO SUIT, PETITION- TAKES FIRST
STEP TO PROTECTING
RARE CALIFORNIA PLANT
§ SUIT FILED TO PROTECT CALIFORNIA RED-LEGGED
FROG
§ GRANTS AVAILABLE FOR PREDATOR PROTECTION
§ GLOBAL WARMING
TO INCREASE RAIN IN SOUTHWEST-
POLICY REFORMS WILL TAKE DECADES
TO HAVE
EFFECT
***** *****
***** *****
IMPERILED CALIFORNIA PLANT CREEPS TOWARD
RECOVERY
On 4-19-99, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service announced a
positive 90-day
finding on the Southwest Center's petition to list the San
Diego ambrosia
(Amrosia pumila) as an endangered species. The 90-day finding
is the first
of three hurdles a species must pass through to be protected
under the
Endangered Species Act.
Generally restricted to terraces
above rivers and drainages, the ambrosia
is threatened by urban sprawl,
agricultural expansion, pesticide spraying,
and exotic species introduction.
Only 14 populations remain in San Diego
County. The long-term viability of at
least 7 of these is questionable due to
population size, fragmentation, and
habitat degradation. One "population"
consists of single plant. Two
populations remain in Riverside County, one of
which is in the path of a
proposed development. Three populations remain in
Mexico, all of which are
threatened by sprawl and agricultural development.
The Southwest Center
filed the petition on 1-9-97. We filed suit on 10-1-98
to compel the agency
to issue both a 90-day finding and a proposed rule.
_____________________
SUIT FILED TO PROTECT CALIFORNIA RED-LEGGED
FROG
On 3-24-99, the Jumping Frog Insitute, the Southwest Center for
Biological
Diversity, the Center for Sierra Nevada Conservation and others
filed suit
against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service for refusing to
designate protected
critical habitat for the California red-legged
frog.
Made famouse by Mark Twain as the Celebrated Jumping Frog of
Calaveras
County, the California red-legged frog is the largest native frog
in the
western
United States. It formerly lived on the coast from Marin
County to Santa
Barbara, throughout the Central Valley, and in lower
elevations of the Sierra
Nevada. Today, the frog can be found only in
isolated pockets along the coast,
with a few scattered survivors hang on in
the Sierra Nevadas. It was listed as
a "threatened" species under the
Endangered Species Act in 1996. Urban
sprawl, logging, chemical spraying, and
irrigation are the primary reasons for
its decline.
The Fish &
Wildlife Service has refused to designate critical habitat because
the
specification of actual areas necessary for the frog's survival
and
recovery
provides the public with a clear and powerful tool to prevent
habitat loss.
This
runs contrary to the desires of the extractive
industries and the politicians
they
fund. The plaintiffs are represented
by Jan Hasselman of the Earthjustice Legal
Defense
Fund.
______________________
GRANTS AVAILABLE
FOR BIOREGIONAL PREDATOR PROTECTION
The Wildlife Network, a project of Earth
Island Institute, with the support of
the
Summerlee Foundation, is
soliciting grant proposals to restore and maintain
healthy ecosystems through
carnivore protection and recovery. Up to $25,000 is
available for a
Bioregional Strategic Planning pilot program. Technical and
facilitation
assistance are also available. Proposals should bring together
potential
allies to craft 2 to 5 year strategic plans.
Groups working on wildlife,
biodiversity, animal, wilderness, habitat
protection
and resource related
issues are encouraged to apply. Applicants must have a
strong
commitment to wildlife and/or resource protection, have experience and
skill
organizing collaborative efforts, and have a 501(c)(3)
organization
through
which to receive the funds.
The grant
procedures include Phase I - the initial screening application, and
Phase II,
the full application process. Five applicants who meet the
guidelines
from Phase I will be asked to complete the Phase II
application procedure.
Application deadline for Phase I is July 15, 1999. The
funding covers steering
committee meetings, workshops, research,
communication networking, and a
two-day summit.
For more information
and to obtain a copy of the guidelines contact
Sharon Negri:
snegri@igc.apc.org, or write to:
The Wildlife Network, 353 Wallace Way,
NE Suite 12
Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
206-780-9718
__________________
GLOBAL
WARMING TO INCREASE RAIN IN SOUTHWEST-
POLICY REFORMS WILL TAKE DECADES TO
HAVE EFFECT
Carbon dioxide emissions over the next century could increase
wintertime
precipitation over the U.S. Southwest and Great Plains by 40% as
global
average temperature rises 3 degrees, according to latest results from
a new
climate system model developed at the National Center for
Atmospheric
Research by NCAR, university, and other laboratory scientists.
According
to the model reduction of carbon dioxide concentrations over the
next
century by one half would largely dry up the extra rain and snow,
and
would slow the global temperature rise to 2 degrees. The model
results
were announced last week in Atlanta. The study was funded in part by
the
National Science Foundation.
The model shows no clear separation
between the business-as-usual and
the stabilization cases until around 2060,
even though the carbon dioxide
concentrations begin to diverge in 2010. The
half-century lag until the
changes in greenhouse emissions begin to affect
the climate noticeably
is the result of large thermal inertia in the earth's
climate system,
especially in the
oceans.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Kierán
Suckling
ksuckling@sw-center.org
Executive
Director
520.623.5252 phone
Southwest Center for Biological
Diversity 520.623.9797 fax
http://www.sw-center.org
pob 710, tucson, az 85702-710