Discussion Topic: Are sage grouse an endangered species?
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife service is asking a federal judge to withdraw papers that were submitted to add the sage grouse to the endangered species list. Adding sage grouse to the endangered species list could mean tighter restrictions on oil, housing, and agricultural development across the Rocky Mountain West.
The battle between the USFWS and the Western Watersheds Project on the protection of sage grouse has been going on since 2005, when the Western Watersheds Project sued the USFWS when the grouse did not make the endangered species list.
The battle between the USFWS and the Western Watersheds Project on the protection of sage grouse has been going on since 2005, when the Western Watersheds Project sued the USFWS when the grouse did not make the endangered species list.
In December, U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill issued a decision highly critical of the agency's decision, saying the service failed to use the "best science" available when deciding not to give the declining species protection under the federal Endangered Species Act.
As part of the remedy phase of the lawsuit, the agency and the Western Watersheds Project worked out an agreement, called a stipulation of remand, that set a timetable for various actions, with a final decision to be made by the agency in May 2009.
Now the agency wants out of that agreement. Click here for the whole story.
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