Not exactly in line with the thread on Barred Owls....which I have = banded many with a Master Banding permit since '85, vs. N. Spotted Owls, = but thought some would be interested. YOUR Federal Government at work = again in the name of Conservation. Thanks.
Mike Nolan Spotted Owl: Stick with science SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER EDITORIAL BOARD There they go again. In the latest example of their lapdog eagerness to = ignore science and serve corporate interests, Bush administration = officials have distorted critical recommendations on spotted owl = protection. A team of scientists put together a revised plan to tighten protections = for the owl, whose numbers are dropping faster than expected. But, as = the Seattle P-I reported last week, a team of top officials, including a = former timber lobbyist, came up with a revised plan. One of the = Northwest scientists who worked on the plan said, "We're faced with a = document that doesn't measure up to one of the key provisions of the = Endangered Species Act, which is that the recovery plan must be based on = best available science."=20 The original plan from a panel of Northwest officials and scientists, = including timber representatives, proposed setting aside specific blocks = of old-growth forest to protect the owls. But the made-in-D.C. revision = creates the possibility the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Bureau of = Land Management, federal agencies with a heavy interest in resource = exploitation, could decide against old-growth set-asides. Supposedly, = the changes add an element of needed "flexibility."=20 That sounds good. Adaptive management is a promising approach to = environmental recovery. But whether the issue is owls, salmon or global = warming, the administration has a scandalous record of flexibility about = facts, science and legal theory. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hold a meeting May 31 in Lacey = to allow Washington residents to express their views on the revised = plan. We expect there will be a lot of opposition. But we don't know = whether anyone will really be listening. Flexibility has its drawbacks, = at least when it threatens to let good science interfere with the = exercise of brute political force. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/313443_owled.html ---------- If we are on another line or away from the phone, please leave your = number, best time to return your call and/or your e-mail address. =20 After hours and weekend phone appointments are available upon request. Sincerely, J. Michael Nolan, Director =20 Rainforest and Reef 501 (c)(3) non-profit *************************************************************************= ************** "Outstanding-Affordable Field Courses in Rainforest & Marine Ecology" "Spanish/Cultural Immersion: Spain, Mexico, Central and South America" Rainforest and Reef 501 (c)(3) non-profit P.O. Box 141543 Grand Rapids, Michigan 49514-1543 USA Local/International Phone: 001.616.604.0546 Toll Free U.S. and Canada: 1.877.255.3721 Skype/MS IM: travelwithrandr AOL IM: buddythemacaw E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] and [EMAIL PROTECTED] *Note: Please send inquiries to both e-mail addresses Web: http://rainforestandreef.org Costa Rica: Juan Pablo Bello San Jose, Costa Rica E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Phone: 011.506.290.8883/011.506.822.8222=20 Europe: Marion Stephan Frankfurt, Germany E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Phone: 011.49.172.305.4738 *************************************************************************= **************
