Liberty
Matters News Service
September 23, 2004
ESA Challenge Before the U.S. Supreme Court
It's taken almost four years and a sizeable amount of
money, but the lawsuit known as GDF Realty v. Gale Norton has finally arrived
to the doorstep of the U.S. Supreme Court. Funded by the American Land
Foundation, the case is challenging the constitutionality of the Take provision
of the Endangered Species Act. Six cave bugs listed over 16 years ago have
prevented Fred Purcell, the landowner, from obtaining a Take permit from the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, even though he has performed every requirement
thrown at him by the government. If the Court accepts the petition to be heard,
there is a chance that the ESA could be restricted from regulating endangered
species found on private property that have no commercial value and are not
traded in interstate commerce. That means over half of all species listed would
be affected by the outcome of this case. Six judges at the Fifth Circuit agreed
with ALF and there is hope the Supreme Court will agree with them.
Universities Emphasize Sustainable Environmentalism
More than 300 universities in
the U. S. and 40 other countries have signed onto the Talloires Declaration, "a
10-point action plan to incorporate sustainability and environmental literacy
in teaching, research and campus operations." Pacific Lutheran University
(Tacoma, Washington), President Loren J. Anderson bragged that PLU is the first
college in the Pacific Northwest to hop on board the environmental
indoctrination train. "It's our obligation to protect our resources for the
future," Anderson said. The Talloires Declaration was adopted during an
international conference in Talloires, France in 1990. Its authors believe that
earth is in grave danger of being destroyed due to the "inequitable and
unsustainable production and consumption patterns that aggravate poverty in
many regions of the world." The declaration emphasizes indoctrinating
university students with a wide curriculum, advancing the cause of social
justice and other United Nations type mumbo jumbo. The 10-point plan seeks to
involve the public, governments, and industry into its ambitious efforts toward
an environmentally sustainable future and to produce graduates that are
thoroughly indoctrinated as "ecologically responsible citizens." Number 8,
Enhance Capacity of Primary and Secondary Schools, is most troubling. The
promoters intend to start with the small ones in primary grades and move on to
the secondary schools, ensuring there will be little resistance to their
message once the children reach college age. A quick look at the web site of
the Talloires Declaration reveals, not surprisingly, close ties to the United
Nations and a little known organization, The Center for Respect of Life and
Environment that promotes environmental justice through religion. Before
sending that young person off to college, parents need to see if the chosen
school promotes sustainable environmental policies.
Universities Target Our Kids for
Sustainability Indoctrination
Road Improvement Project Delayed for Birds
A much-needed road improvement project in
California was halted by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) last
February because they claimed the project could harm nesting California
gnatcatchers. The delay has boosted the price tag of the project from $724,050
to more than $1 million. Murrieta City officials had doubts the birds were
present and the biologist they hired to investigate could find no evidence of
their existence. Still, the FWS stubbornly refused to allow the project to
proceed until the end of August. The road improvements will eventually add a
traffic light and widen on-off ramps at an interchange with Interstate Highway
215, that is choked with traffic when students are traveling to and from nearby
Vista Murrieta High School. Officials from the company handling the road
construction, Vance Corporation of Rialto, say it will take another two to
three months before the improvements are completed.
Road Job Delayed Seven Months
Shrimp Pose Danger for Airline Passengers
The so-called endangered
Riverside fairy shrimp could create problems for airline passengers at the Los
Angeles International Airport (LAX). The U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service
announced earlier this year that a 108 acre plot of the airport was suitable
habitat for the shrimp, even though airport officials have sought permission to
move the shrimp for years. "The obligation of Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA)
to provide safe and efficient air travel makes it physically and socially
impossible to improve, expand or conserve habitat for Riverside fairy shrimp on
the LAX airfield," said Jim Ritchie, LAX deputy executive director, in a letter
to FWS. Airport officials argue that shrimp habitat and standing water attracts
birds that can be sucked into aircraft engines damaging the planes and placing
passengers at risk. Fish and Wildlife officials have turned a deaf ear to the
concerns, however, saying the agency must comply with a federal judge's order
to designate critical habitat for the shrimp. The shrimp were not known to
exist at LAX until environmental studies were conducted in the course of
airport expansion plans. The studies were conducted during one of the wettest
seasons in more than a century and revealed the shrimps' presence in every
conceivable depression, including a hazardous-materials containment pond.
Airport officials continue to campaign to relocate the shrimp, although federal
biologists say not enough scientific information exists to indicate the shrimp
could thrive elsewhere. On the other hand, adequate data could prove the shrimp
could adapt to a different location.
Fragile
Shrimp Spark Big Dispute