Saving dwindling species: States should play a greater role in protection

[Shelor]

The Endangered Species Act is once again being targeted by its critics in Congress. Spearheaded by Rep. Richard Pombo of California, the House of Representatives last September passed a bill that would make some significant changes to the existing law.

Perhaps most notable would be the elimination of the critical habitat designation so unpopular with many private landowners. Instead, the bill proposes payments to landowners to encourage conservation uses of their lands, including a controversial requirement to compensate property owners whose future uses are precluded in order to protect a listed species. Pombo's measure, House Resolution 3824, also would eliminate the Endangered Species Committee.

But there's a more limited and politically realistic path to reform that would significantly increase efforts to recover listed species by offering states the lead in developing and implementing recovery plans.

.......

Every state has a fish and game or wildlife agency with extensive knowledge of local wildlife, and many tribes are developing such expertise. The ESA should be amended to invite states and tribes to prepare state- and reservation-specific plans, with actions necessary to recover species and with criteria for determining when recovery has been achieved, subject to federal oversight.

States and tribes might be attracted to take advantage of this invitation for several reasons:


To move more actively to recover and de-list species within their boundaries than would occur under existing recovery processes;

To re-establish primacy over management of wildlife within their jurisdictions;

To obtain federal funding to help develop and implement such plans; and

To have greater control over the regulatory programs affecting activities in their jurisdictions



http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_3544803

[blindpig]

1. I don't think so.

1) I don't trust the states(certainly not mine!)to do the right thing. The smaller the entity, the move susceptible to moneyed interest. Also state legislatures tend to be provencial and realy couldn't give a damn about obscure biota. Then there is the matter of boundaries, species generally don't recognise state boundaries.

2) Money. Most states cannot or will not find the money to do what needs to be done.

The ESA needs strengthening in its' present form, to hell with Pombo.