ESA Working Group Pt 2
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. The newly launched Endangered Species Act Working Group was put together to examine how the ESA is being implemented by federal agencies and the practical impacts on the American people.
That’s according to one of the organizers, U.S. Representative Dan Newhouse, chair of the Congressional Western Caucus, who says they really just want to make it better …
NEWHOUSE … “We’re looking at ways that perhaps we could improve that act to try to allow species to be recovered, while at the same time, being able to develop parts of the country and utilize some of the resources that we have in the United States.”
Over the years, Newhouse says the ESA has been become outdated …
NEWHOUSE … “It’s also been used as a weapon to stop some of the forest management practices that are so important. And as we’ve seen over the last years the results of poor forest management has been these catastrophic wildfires that seem to be a common occurrence every summer.”
Newhouse says it’s time for a more effective ESA …
NEWHOUSE … “There’s a lot of things that we’re looking at and just getting started and we’re hoping to have some recommendations over the next six months or so.”
Newhouse says only in the federal government would a success rate of 5% be considered a passing grade … but that’s what the ESA has done.
