Originally published July 21, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Page modified July 21, 2007 at 2:04 AM
Agency to review species decisions
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Friday it will review eight endangered-species decisions that were "inappropriately influenced"...
The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Friday it will review eight endangered-species decisions that were "inappropriately influenced" by a political appointee of the Interior Department, throwing a lifeline to 18 species scientists had deemed to be in need of protection.
Scientists, conservationists and some lawmakers welcomed the news that the agency will reconsider the actions of former deputy assistant secretary Julie MacDonald to limit federal protections in those eight cases, but they expressed dismay that the agency chose not to re-examine other decisions she influenced.
The agency decided not to reconsider decisions MacDonald influenced involving two protected species in the Northwest — the marbled murrelet and the bull trout.
Fish and Wildlife Director H. Dale Hall told reporters in a conference call that decisions affecting the white-tailed prairie dog, Preble's meadow jumping mouse (involved in two decisions), arroyo toad, southwestern willow flycatcher, California red-legged frog, Canada lynx and 12 species of Hawaiian picture-wing flies will be re-examined.
First as a special assistant and later as deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks, MacDonald was involved in more than 200 endangered-species rulings between 2002 and May 2007, when she resigned after an inspector general's report that found that she had improperly leaked information to private organizations, bullied staff scientists and broken federal rules.
Interior's regional directors came up with a list of 11 decisions they believed were influenced by MacDonald, but three were struck off the list after "further discussions" with Hall.
Two — a ruling on a regional listing of the marbled murrelet and the habitat of the bull trout — were pulled from the list Thursday.
In 2004, Fish and Wildlife Service staff in Portland had recommended that murrelets remain listed as a threatened species under the ESA because populations in Washington, Oregon and California had been declining 4 to 7 percent a year. MacDonald intervened, arguing that populations were stable in Canada and Alaska, and recommended removing protection for the seabird.
When agency scientists recommended that the government designate tens of thousands of miles of streams from Washington to Montana as habitat critical for bull trout, MacDonald stepped in again, eliminating that designation from 90 percent of those waterways.
Friday, however, Hall said his agency would not review those decisions because MacDonald had not actually manipulated the science.
"It's not inappropriate to take the science and then apply policy decisions to it," Hall said in a conference call with reporters.
Environmentalists called the distinction meaningless. "We have a real problem with that," said Jan Hasselman, a Seattle attorney with the environmental law firm Earthjustice. "When a political appointee interferes with the process to reach a desired conclusion of less protection, you can call it interfering with the science or interfering with the policy. The result's the same."
For now, the bull trout decision is being fought in court, and marbled murrelets remain protected as scientists evaluate new information suggesting that populations are now also declining in Alaska and Canada.
Seattle Times staff reporter Craig Welch contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company
UPDATE - 03:19 AM
Obama seeks equal partnership in Asia
NYC trial for 9/11 suspects poses risks
Fort Hood gunman contacted Pakistan, lawmaker says
Immigration on White House agenda

Opening day at Crystal Mountain
Skiers crowded the slopes at Crystal Mountain for one of the resort's earliest openings.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- Homeless man, 46, arrested in Greenwood arsons
- Steve Kelley | ESPN's Bill Simmons gets us: He hates Clay Bennett, too
- KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
- Seattle U. Men's Hoops | Big recruit goes from Huskies to Redhawks
- Razor found in muffin an accident, 'mortified' baker says
- Mariners sign Jack Wilson to 2-year contract
- Suspect's family shaken by slaying of police officer
- Mountlake Terrace woman reports razor in muffin
- Ivar's undersea billboards a hoax devised as marketing ploy
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
628 - Seattle man to pack a pistol into community center to protest mayor's ban
180 - Light rail to airport to begin Dec. 19
177 - GOP clueless as families struggle with health care
157 - ESPN's Bill Simmons gets us: He hates Clay Bennett, too
125 - KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
124 - Mariners sign Jack Wilson to 2-year contract
110 - Prosecutor weighs death penalty in police slaying
103 - Wright State game thread
96 - Person of interest in custody in connection with Greenwood arsons
93
- Light rail to airport to begin Dec. 19
- Homeless man, 46, arrested in Greenwood arsons
- Ivar's undersea billboards a hoax devised as marketing ploy
- Steve Kelley | ESPN's Bill Simmons gets us: He hates Clay Bennett, too
- Washington in race for federal education funds
- KVI talk radio host off the air as of Thursday
- Goodwill's Glitter Sale is Nov. 14-15
- Police investigate videotaped arrest
- Boeing: 787 fix is complete on first plane
- Seattle U. Men's Hoops | Big recruit goes from Huskies to Redhawks








