Tweets,

Below is an excerpt from a recent press release from USFW. At first glance,
the release, in it's entirety sounds like a big step forward in protecting
the forests and wildlife of Washington state. However, after I read these
three paragraphs I really had to wonder if it was all that big of a step.
Sounds to me like there's still plenty of loopholes for the big-money
interests to squeeze through.

What do you think?

Peggi


" Under the Act, the taking of a listed, threatened or
endangered species -- killing, harming, or harassing a species,
or adversely modifying habitat -- is prohibited without special
authorization from the Fish and Wildlife Service. Through a
habitat conservation plan negotiated with the Service, however,
an applicant can be permitted to take a listed species
if the taking is incidental and is part of a larger conservation
plan that will not jeopardize the continued existence of the
species and is incidental to legal activities.

Part of the Department of Natural Resources HCP replaces
spotted owl protection circles with a more flexible approach to
protect the owl, which is listed as a threatened species under
the Act. The conservation strategy supports spotted owl
populations in designated areas that scientists have determined
to be most important to owl conservation based on proximity to
federal reserves. Currently, there are 344 owl protection
circles on the Department s land affecting timber activities on
600,000 acres.

The Department of Natural Resources manages 5 million acres
in Washington state of forest, aquatic, agricultural and urban
lands for benefits to current and future trust beneficiaries and
other residents of the state. Of this land, 2.1 million acres
are forest lands. By state law, state-owned trust lands must be
managed primarily to produce income for public schools,
universities, prisons, state mental hospitals, community
colleges, local services in many counties, and the state general
fund."
Ben & Peggi Rodgers
Aptos, CA (near Santa Cruz)
USA
woodduck at cruzio.com

"A bird does not sing because it has an answer,
It sings because it has a song"