November 9, 2001
- BUSH ADMINISTRATION
SUPPRESSES POLAR BEAR REPORT CRITICAL OF ARCTIC REFUGE OIL DRILLING
- SCIENTIFIC REPORT: WESTERN
TROUT NEED ROADLESS HABITAT
- 22,000 ACRES TO BE PROTECTED
FOR TWO CALIFORNIA PLANTS
- CALIFORNIA GOSHAWKS
DODGE TIMBER BULLET
- AGREEMENT REACHED TO
RE-ESTABLISH CRITICAL HABITAT FOR ENDANGERED ARIZONA PYGMY OWL
BUSH ADMINISTRATION
SUPPRESSES POLAR BEAR REPORT CRITICAL OF ARCTIC REFUGE OIL DRILLING
On 10-30-01, the
Center for Biological Diversity filed suit against the Bush administration for
refusing to publicly release a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service report suggesting
that opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling could undermine
the entire U.S. polar bear conservation strategy and violate an international
polar bear agreement. Though the report was requisitioned by Congress in response
to complaints about oil drilling and hunting, the Bush administration has refused
to complete the report, send it Congress, or even release it to the public.
Instead, it is pushing Congress to approve oil drilling before the impacts are
revealed.
To find out more about the
lawsuit and the suppressed report, click
here.
Washington
Post article.
SCIENTIFIC REPORT:
WESTERN TROUT NEED ROADLESS HABITAT
The newly formed Western
Native Trout campaign released a scientific report on 11-5-01 showing the importance
of roadless areas to imperiled native western trout. Using GIS technology and
biological indicators of trout health, the report shows that the remaining healthy
populations of native trout are strongly correlated with roadless areas. If
these areas are fragmented with road construction as proposed by the Bush administration,
extinction of unique trout populations and possibly entire species may result.
Over 2.8 million acres of
roadless area were lost in the past two decades alone.
The Western Native Trout
Campaign is a coalition of conservation and angling groups dedicated to studying,
protecting and enjoying the West's native trout. The report was produced by
Biodiversity Associates, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Pacific
Rivers Council.
Visit the Western
Native Trout Campaign.
ENN
story on the trout report.
22,000 ACRES TO
BE PROTECTED FOR TWO CALIFORNIA PLANTS
Fulfilling a court order
won by the Center for Biological Diversity and the California Native Plant Society,
the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service issued proposed rules to designate and
protect 22,054 acres of critical habitat for the purple amole (Chlorogalum
purpureum) on 11-8-01 and the Kneeland prairie penny-cress (Thlaspi californicum)
on 10-24-01.
The amole, a member of the
lily family, occurs in oak woodland and grassland habitats in Monterey and San
Luis Obispo counties. It is threatened by military training, off-road vehicles,
fire suppression, cattle grazing and invasive non-native species. "Amole"
is an Aztec name brought to the U.S. by Spanish explorers from Mexico. It is
also sometimes called a "soap plant" because Native Americans crushed
the underground bulb into a lather with which to glue arrows together. The fibers
of the bulb jacket were used to make brushes.
The penny-cress, a member
of the mustard family, is endemic to serpentine soil on the outer north coast
range of Humboldt County. It has declined by 48% since 1997 with only 5,100
plants remaining today. It is threatened by habitat fragmentation and destruction,
primarily in the form of roads and helipad construction.
The penny-cress and amole
are two of 181 California plants protected under the federal Endangered Species
Act. Most of these plants, including the amole, were first petitioned for federal
protection by the Smithsonian Institution in 1975, but languished in bureaucratic
limbo for decades until the Center and CNPS filed suit to protect them. Center
initiatives have led to the listing of 84 California species, including 69 plants,
and over 5.8 million acres of protected critical habitat.
Learn more about the Center's
Goldenstate
Biodiversity Initiative.
CALIFORNIA GOSHAWKS
DODGE TIMBER BULLET
On 10-10-01, the California
Board of Forestry rejected a petition by a logger to remove the northern goshawk
from the state "sensitive" species list. Delisting would have opened
more of the goshawk's mature forest habitat to logging. During a board hearing,
the Center for Biological Diversity presented evidence that the goshawk is vulnerable
to logging impacts and needs stronger, not weaker conservation measures.
The goshawk is not entirely
safe, however. The existing state conservation guidelines allow too much logging
and the Board of Forestry plans to review its entire sensitive species program
from a decidedly timber production perspective.
Learn more about the Center's
Campaign
to protect goshawks.
AGREEMENT REACHED
TO RE-ESTABLISH CRITICAL HABITAT FOR ENDANGERED ARIZONA PYGMY OWL
To head off future litigation
and ensure that habitat is protected for Arizona's endangered cactus ferruginous
pygmy owl, the Center for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife have
reached an agreement with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service that calls for
the redesignation of critical habitat for the owl within 16 months. The agreement
was submitted to a federal judge for approval on 11-1-01.
Through scientific petitions
and litigation, the Center won federal protection for the tiny but fierce owl
in 1997 and the designation of 731,000 acres of critical habitat in 1999. The
habitat protection, however, was struck down on technical grounds on 9-21-01.
Based on new biological research, we expect the new critical habitat designation
to be significantly larger than the previous.
Become
a member of the Center for Biological Diversity, and ensure a future for wildlife
and habitat.
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