Subject: SW BIODIVERSITY ALERT #43
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Southwest Biodiversity Alert #43
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southwest center for biological
diversity
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ksuckling@sw-center.org
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http://www.envirolink.org/orgs/sw-center
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1.
PETITIONED FILED TO LIST SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PLANT AS
ENDANGERED-
HCPs DRIVING IT EXTINCTION
2.
COURT ORDERS DESIGNATION OF CRITICAL HABITAT-
OVERRIDES
ILLEGAL FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE POLICY
3. ARMED GUARDS TO PROTECT
CONDOR FROM GOVERNOR SYMINGTON?
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PETITIONED FILED TO LIST SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PLANT AS
ENDANGERED-
HCPs DRIVING IT EXTINCTION
The Southwest Center and the
California Native Plant Society have
submitted a petition to the Fish and
Wildlife Service to list the San
Diego ambrosia as endangered under the
ESA. Always rare in the
areas that today comprise Riverside, San Diego,
and Baja California,
in recent years San Diego ambrosia has been nearly
wiped out by
development. Two populations persist in Riverside County
near
Skunk Hollow and Lake Elsinor, and twelve remain in San
Diego
County in the San Luis Rey, San Diego, and Sweetwater
river
drainages. As few as three viable United States populations are
all
that may remain one year from today due to pending
development.
The plight of the San
Diego ambrosia is indicative of common
problems with southern California
habitat conservation planning
efforts. All populations of this species
"preserved" by the City of San
Diego's Multiple Species Conservation Program
for example were
misidentified. Numerous ambrosia populations may have
been lost
while populations of another similar species were
set-aside.
COURT ORDERS DESIGNATION OF CRITICAL HABITAT-
OVERRIDES
ILLEGAL FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE POLICY
In October, 1996, in response to
a lawsuit by the Southwest Center, a
southern California District Court
ordered the Fish and Wildlife
Service to issue final decisions on
whether to list the Laguna
Mountains skipper, Quino checkerspot
butterfly, San Diego fairy
shrimp, Cuyamaca Lake downingia and
Parish's meadowfoam as
Endangered. The court rejected agency arguments
that a listing
backlog and lack of congressional funding were sufficient
reason for
delaying a final decision.
Just two
weeks later, however, the Service asked the court to allow
them not to make a
decision regarding critical habitat. The agency
recently codified a long
standing policy of not designating critical
habitat even though it is
required by law. The Court affirmed that the
agency is guided by the ESA,
which does not include the exemptions
put forth in agency regulations:
"...this Court orders (the Service) to
issue final orders for these five
species and to comply with any other
relevant sections of the ESA with
respect to these five species -
including designating critical habitat... by
February 1, 1997. In the
interim period, the Court will retain jurisdiction
over the action."
ARMED GUARDS TO PROTECT CONDOR FROM GOVERNOR
SYMINGTON?
Environmentalists have protested a Fish and Wildlife Service
decision
to allow the multiply indicted Govenor of Arizona near the
endangered
California Condor without the presence of armed guards. Earlier
this
year, Fife Symington publicly offered to kill a Mexican spotted
owl,
saying they look better stuffed and mounted. "Why would they allow
him
anywhere near an endangered species? It's like inviting Dillinger
into
a bank," said Robin Silver of the Southwest Center in an Arizona
Republic
news story. Symington backed off his earlier promise saying he
"probably"
would not kill a spotted owl- its just that "somebody has to weigh
in an
bring some sanity to the dialogue" he
said.