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Up one levelEleventh-Hour Rollback of Endangered Species Act Attempted
In an attempt to dramatically weaken key provisions of the Endangered Species Act, Interior Department officials today announced proposed changes to the consultation requirements under Section 7 of the landmark environmental law.
42 Square Mile Federal Uranium Program Challenged
A coalition of conservation groups filed suit in federal court today, challenging the Department of Energy’s decision to vastly expand its uranium mining program on 42 square miles of public land near the spectacular Dolores River Canyon, a tributary to the Colorado River in southwest Colorado.
Colorado's Black-Footed Ferrets Saved from Drilling Threat
A recent decision by a Bureau of Land Management internal review board overturned the leasing of black-footed ferret habitat in western Colorado for oil and gas drilling. The ruling cited BLM for failing to heed warnings from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about likely impacts to the highly endangered species from new oil and gas drilling before offering up the leases to the highest bidder. The ruling echoes a similar one protecting black-footed ferrets from drilling in Utah in 2006, which has substantially changed leasing of public lands in Utah since.
Protections Stripped from Endangered Wildlife Species in Wyoming
Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed protections for the Preble's meadow jumping mouse in Wyoming, while retaining protections in Colorado. A coalition of conservation groups will challenge this decision.
Bush Administration Attempts to Undermine Wildlife Conservation on Public Lands
Acting behind closed doors, the Bush administration is rewriting a key policy manual for management of endangered, threatened, and other special-status species found on federal lands that would eliminate key protections currently given to the most at-risk wildlife and plants.
America Celebrates Endangered Species Day
On May 16, America celebrates Endangered Species Day and our nation’s commitment to protecting endangered species and their habitat with events across the country. In Denver, a large event at the Denver Downtown Aquarium and classroom visits mark the occasion.
Endangered Species Act Protection Will Be Considered for White-tailed Prairie Dog
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced it will initiate a formal review of the white-tailed prairie dog's status, and will consider protecting the prairie dog under the Endangered Species Act. This overturns the Service's 2004 decision denying protections, which the Service admits was manipulated by a political appointee.
Core Lynx Habitat Spared from Oil and Gas Drilling
Some of the most important habitat for endangered Canada lynx in the Southern Rocky Mountains was spared from imminent damage from oil and gas drilling Friday when the Bureau of Land Management deferred leasing on 144,000 acres of the Rio Grande National Forest.
Lynx Habitat Threatened by Oil and Gas Development
Wildlife advocates and conservation groups filed formal protests yesterday of the Bureau of Land Management’s proposal to allow oil and gas drilling in tens of thousands of acres of forest in Southwest Colorado. Oil and gas drilling in this area would damage important wildlife habitat, including core habitat for the Canada lynx.
Colorado's Greater Sage Grouse Plan Needs Political Will
Colorado's Division of Wildlife has released the state's plan to preserve the greater sage-grouse, an ambitious program which will be successful only if the state can implement it fully and garner the cooperation necessary to do so.
New Critical Habitat Designation for Canada Lynx Excludes Colorado
Although the Fish and Wildlife Service's new critical habitat designation greatly expands habitat protections for the threatened Canada lynx in much of its former range throughout America, it still excludes Colorado, where a reintroduction program is in full swing. The new habitat protections are intended to correct inappropriate manipulation of scientific findings by disgraced Bush appointee Julie MacDonald.
Endangered Species Act Protection Will Be Considered for White-tailed Prairie Dog
Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agreed to overturn a politically motivated decision denying the white-tailed prairie dog consideration as an endangered species. The Service will instead initiate a formal status review by May 1, 2008 and will determine whether Endangered Species Act protection is necessary for the prairie dog by June 1, 2010.
U.S. to Move Grey Wolf off Endangered Species List
The Billings Gazette reports on today's announcement that the U.S. government plans to remove federal protections for the gray wolf. This would mean open season on recently established wolf populations in Idaho, Wyoming and Montana, where state plans call for the wolf populations to be dramatically cut back through hunting. Wolves once roamed widely throughout North America and were nearly eradicated through a federally sponsored killing program by the 1930s. They were reintroduced in the mid-1990s in Yellowstone National Park and Central Idaho as part of the Endangered Species Act reintroduction program.
Victory in Fight to Stop Village at Wolf Creek Development and Protect Key Lynx Corridor
An important victory was achieved today in the effort to prevent development of a resort and residential development that would accommodate up to 10,000 people near Wolf Creek Ski Area. The development would threaten a key wildlife movement corridor that is particularly important for lynx. The U.S. Forest Service has agreed to conduct a new Environmental Impact Statement in order to settle a lawsuit filed in 2006.
Fish and Wildlife Service Acknowledges Plight of Gunnison's Prairie Dog, Fails to Protect Species
The Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledged today that the Gunnison's prairie dog warrants protection under the Endangered Species Act but failed to actually provide such protection. The decision reverses an earlier one tainted by interference from former Interior Department official Julie MacDonald. The agency's decision also splits the species' habitat into two parts and proposes protection only for the smaller "montane" portion.
Conservation Groups File Protest of BLM Plan for Great Divide
A coalition of conservation groups today challenged a BLM management plan for Wyoming's Great Divide. The coalition is encouraging the BLM to adopt the Western Heritage Alternative, a science-based solution allowing continued production of oil and gas resources while protecting key areas like Adobe Town, Powder Rim, and important habitat for sage grouse and big game.
Unique Pygmy Rabbit One Step Closer to Protection
The imperiled pygmy rabbit is one step closer to protection after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a positive preliminary finding on a formal petition seeking its protection under the Endangered Species Act. The Service originally rejected the formal protection request, but Center for Native Ecosystems joined other conservation groups in challenging their decision. The finding comes after a federal court declared the rejection illegal and ordered the Service to revisit its decision.
Investigation into Politically Tainted Endangered Species Decisions Grows
Based on a request from Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR), the Interior Department’s Office of the Inspector General announced Friday a new investigation into more than a dozen endangered species decisions that were inappropriately influenced by former Deputy Assistant Secretary Julie MacDonald. The new investigation begins nine months after an earlier Inspector General’s report exposed MacDonald’s interference in numerous Fish and Wildlife Service decisions and led to her resignation and an ongoing scandal in the Interior Department.
Endangered Species Act Protection Sought for White-tailed Prairie Dog
A coalition of conservation groups today filed suit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to overturn a politically motivated decision denying the white-tailed prairie dog protection as an endangered species. This legal action came on the same day that the House Natural Resources Committee released a letter from the Fish and Wildlife Service acknowledging that the denial of protection to the white-tailed prairie dog and several other species was the result of political interference.
Preble's Meadow Jumping Mouse, Colorado Open Space Confirmed for Protection
The Preble’s meadow jumping mouse, a key indicator of the health of streamside wildlife habitat along the Front Range, was confirmed today as a species in need of Endangered Species Act protection in Colorado. In Wyoming, however, the Preble’s will be stripped of its protection, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service proposal.
