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Leaked
Document Could Change Endangered Species Act
By Joseph Friedrichs,
Although it has not been
modified since the 1980s, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposal to
tweak portions of the Endangered Species Act garnered criticism last
week from
The 113-page proposal
would sharply limit the number of species that qualify as threatened or
endangered, according to a story by Keith Chu in today’s
Bend Bulletin.
Had the changes taken place a few years ago, the bald eagle, grizzly
bear or the grey wolf would not have been protected, the Bulletin
reported.
A spokesman for the Fish
and Wildlife Service said the leaked report was written early last year
and was never intended to be made public.
Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore.,
told the Bulletin he had not seen the report, but that he supports
taking a fresh look at the law.
“These rules haven’t
been updated since Ronald Reagan was president,” Walden said,
according to the Bulletin.
The Endangered Species
Act, created in 1973, protects animals and plants at risk of
disappearing from their natural habitat. Once listed as endangered,
species gain a wide range of protections, including preventing human
activity near their critical habitat. About 1,000 species are currently
listed as threatened or endangered, according to the Fish and Wildlife
Service.
The former chairman of a
House subcommittee on forests, Walden has supported past efforts to
revise the act that were widely criticized by environmental groups, the
Bulletin reported. However, there’s not much reason for animal lovers
to be afraid now that Democrats control Congress. With the shift if
power, it’s unlikely the leaked proposal will be enacted, Rep. Earl
Blumenauer, D-Ore., said, according to the Bulletin.
“As a practical matter
it’s just not going to stick,” Blumenauer said. “It’s not a good
time for them to try to end run the Endangered Species Act.”
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Source: http://www.newwest.net/index.php/city/article/leaked_document_