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Trampling Facts And Wildlife

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 22, 2008

Remember when President Bush promised his administration would seek "balance" on environmental issues?

How's this for balance?

The Bush administration wants builders, not scientists, to determine whether federal projects will hurt animals protected by the Endangered Species Act.

Under the rule change pushed by Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, the federal agency pursuing the project would unilaterally decide whether endangered creatures face harm from its plans. Current rules require an independent review by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or other scientific agencies.

Now Bush and Kempthorne want to treat builders as wildlife experts.

Kempthorne says the change is needed to keep the Endangered Species Act from being used as a "back door" way to regulate greenhouse gases believed to cause global warming. It's true some environmental groups have said they intend to use the law to control emissions.

But the law rarely stops projects and is plenty flexible, though sometimes it requires adjustments to be made in a project. While there is no evidence that the law is being widely abused, there is plenty of evidence that federal engineers have ignored the environmental consequences of their ventures, from the channelization of the Kissimmee River to the destruction of Louisiana's coastal wetlands.

Alas, this attack on natural resources is not a surprise from an administration that encourages political appointees to revise scientific reports to minimize environmental concerns. A former Interior official recently resigned after it was reported that she consistently ruled against Fish and Wildlife Service biologists and rewrote reports in a way that aided the oil industry.

If the administration doesn't abandon this proposal, the next president should quickly jettison it.

Decisions about endangered species should be based on facts, not upon the wishful thinking of builders or environmentalists.

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