Water Log 20.4

Kristen M. Fletcher, J.D., LL.M.

Fish & Wildlife Service Initiates Listing Moratorium
In the fall, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced its decision to place a moratorium on all endangered species listings until September 2001. The moratorium will delay protection for more than 300 species that are proposed for listing or are already considered candidates for listing. At the front of the line for ESA protection are the Aleutian Otter, the Pacific fisher and the island fox.
Without ESA designation, species are not protected from habitat destruction, poaching and trafficking of their parts and products. The FWS charges that litigation over critical habitat designation launched by environmentalists has damaged its listing budget. The FWS faces court-ordered designations for almost 300 species after environmental groups sued for failing to timely designate critical habitat for about 90 percent of the 1,200 species listed under the Endangered Species Act. FWS spokesman Chris Tollefson noted that "Any funding we may have available will be allocated for emergency listings only. We will make sure we take care of any species in immediate danger." Conservation groups counter that the financial problem stems from low congressional funding.
 

FWS Then Joins Interior to List Wild Atlantic Salmon
On November 13, the FWS and Department of Interior
listed the wild populations of Atlantic salmon found in Maine streams and rivers as endangered. The eight waterways affected are the Dennys, East Machias, Machias, Pleasant, Narraguagus, Ducktrap, and Sheepscot Rivers and Cove Brook, a tributary of the Penobscot.
Jamie Rappaport Clark, director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service explained that "[l]ess than 10% of the fish needed for the long-term survival of wild Atlantic salmon are returning to Maine rivers." The ESA now requires the federal agencies to prepare recovery plans for the species. The listing becomes official even before the results of a National Academy of Science study which is expected to be completed in early 2001.
 

The decision to list has opposition in Maine's aquaculture and agriculture industries, as well as governmental leaders. Gov. Angus King and Senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins oppose the decision, claiming it is based on poor science and that, due to the artificial stocking of rivers and resultant interbreeding, a distinct "wild" genetic identity for salmon no longer exists. Based on these challenges, the Maine Attorney General has filed a lawsuit contesting the listing in the U.S. District Court in Portland.
 

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt has indicated that the federal government will review the listing decision once the results of the National Academy of Science study are released.

University of Mississippi