Subject: FW: SW BIODIVERSITY ALERT #46

Subject: SW BIODIVERSITY ALERT #46

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~               SOUTHWEST BIODIVERSITY ALERT #46                 ~
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~           SOUTHWEST CENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY            ~
~                    ksuckling@sw-center.org                     ~
~               www.envirolink.org/orgs/sw-center                ~
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1.  LOACH MINNOW AND SPIKEDACE LOSE CRITICAL HABITAT-
    PHELPS DODGE LOSES EFFORT TO BILL ENVIROS $91,000

2.  NM & AZ COOK UP "CONSERVATION AGREEMENT" TO AVOID JAGUAR LISTING
    UNDER ESA...YOUR LETTERS NEEDED!

3.  FOREST SERVICE LAUNCHES 11 MILLION BOARD FOOT SALVAGE TIMBER SALE-
    3,600 ACRE CLEARCUT ON NORTH RIM OF THE GRAND CANYON

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1.  LOACH MINNOW AND SPIKEDACE LOSE CRITICAL HABITAT-
    PHELPS DODGE LOSES EFFORT TO BILL ENVIROS $91,000

The Southwest Center has lost a lawsuit to increase the amount of
critical habitat for two threatened southwestern fish: the loach minnow
and spikedace.  In 1993, the Southwest Center won a suit requiring the
Fish and Wildlife Service to designate 200 miles of critical habitat in
AZ & NM.  In 1996, a NM judge in the 10th circuit threw out the
designation because the agency did not conduct a NEPA analysis. The
agency then lost again on appeal. This ruling is directly contrary to a
9th  Circuit ruling which states that critical habitat designation does
not need a separate NEPA analysis since it already includes an
environmental and economic analysis. The agency declined to take the
case the Supreme Court, but up to now has maintained the ruling only
applied to the 10th circuit (NM), not to AZ which is in the 9th circuit.

In the current suit, the Center argued that the existing critical habitat is
insufficient to recover the two fish. The Fish and Wildlife Service
changed its position, cynically arguing that since there is no critical
habitat in *either* state, it is nonexistent rather than insufficient. The
court agreed.  Opening round four of this four year battle, the Center
has filed a notice of intent to sue the agency for having no critical
habitat, planning to back in court in March.   Mining giant Phelps
Dodge meanwhile, lost its bid to bill the Center $91,000 for its legal
expenses. The judge ruled that since Phelps Dodge intervened in the
case of its own accord, it was responsible for its own expenses.


2.  NM & AZ COOK UP "CONSERVATION AGREEMENT" TO AVOID JAGUAR LISTING
    UNDER ESA...YOUR LETTERS NEEDED!

In 1994, the Southwest Center won a lawsuit forcing the Fish and Wildlife Service to propose the jaguar as an endangered species in CA,
AZ, NM, TX, and LA. In response to an immanent court ruling
ordering the agency to make a final determination, the FWS has
cooked up a bogus "conservation agreement" with the states of AZ and
NM. The agreement they argue, obviates the need to list the species
under the Endangered Species Act.  The agreement, however, does not
protect a single acre of jaguar habitat or alter penalties for illegally
killing jaguars. It is nothing more than a wish lists of studies and
commissions.

The jaguar is currently listed as endangered in Mexico. The Fish and
Wildlife Service claims it "accidentally" failed to list the species in the
U.S. threw an "oversight" in 1973.  The oversight was never rectified
and the imperiled cat, the largest in North America, has since been
extirpated from the U.S. as a breeding species.  In recent years,
however, it has been seen in southern Arizona and New Mexico. The
jaguar is closely associated with riparian forests and river corridors in
the Southwest.

Please write to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, tell them they can
not delay listing of the Jaguar based on promises of studies and habitat
protection. They must rely solely on *existing* protective measures:

  Nancy Kaufman, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service  
  500 Gold Ave., SW
  Albuquerque, NM 85721


3.  FOREST SERVICE LAUNCHES 11 MILLION BOARD FOOT SALVAGE TIMBER SALE-
    3,600 ACRE CLEARCUT ON NORTH RIM OF THE GRAND CANYON

The Kaibab National Forest has proposed an 11 million board foot
salvage timber sale on the north Rim of the Grand Canyon. The sale is
within the Grand Canyon Game Preserve which was established by
Teddy Roosevelt in 1906. The Forest previously authorized an
additional 6 million board feet under the Salvage Rider, sparking
protests, civil disobedience, and full page newspaper ads. The sale will
cut 30,000 tree over 18" in diameter within critical habitat for the
Mexican spotted owl and within the densest Northern goshawk
population in North America.

The Southwest Center has presented a petition with over 1,000
signatures opposing the sale.