NEWS ROUNDUP

Column: Beware 'Sound Science.' It's Doublespeak for Trouble When George W. Bush and members of his administration talk about environmental policy, the phrase "sound science" rarely goes unuttered. On issues ranging from climate change to the storage of nuclear waste in Nevada's Yucca Mountain, our president has assured us that he's backing up his decisions with careful attention to the best available research. It's not just Bush: Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives, led by Reps. Chris Cannon of Utah and Jim Gibbons of Nevada, have announced the formation of a "Sound Science Caucus" to ramp up the role of "empirical" and "peer reviewed" data in laws such as the Endangered Species Act. And last August the Office of Management and Budget unveiled a proposal to amplify the role of "peer review" in the evaluation of scientific research conducted by federal agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It all sounds noble enough, but the phrases "sound science" and "peer review" don't necessarily mean what you might think. Instead, they're part of a lexicon used to put a pro-science veneer on policies that most of the scientific community itself tends to be up in arms about.... Final wolf-management bill dies Wyoming's case against the federal government over the rejection of its wolf-management plan may now be a little murky after the final bill dealing with the issue died in the Senate. House Bill 111 failed to get out of the Senate Travel, Recreation, Wildlife and Cultural Resources Committee on Friday, committee chair Sen. Delaine Roberts, R-Etna, said.... Beach closures to resume Monday as plover nesting season begins For the next seven months, one beach will have limited hours and restricted access, another will have ropes outlining off-limit areas, and a third will make large sections off-limits to off-road vehicles. Each stretch of coast is operated by a different agency -- the Air Force, the county and the state -- but the one common factor linking the Surf, Guadalupe and Oceano beaches is a federally protected shorebird: the western snowy plover.... Enviro Group Sues Wind Farm to Stop Bird Deaths Giant wind turbines at Altamont Pass, California, are illegally killing more than 1,000 birds of prey each year, according to a lawsuit filed January 12 by the Center for Biological Diversity. The suit demands an injunction halting operation of the turbines until and unless protective measures are taken and highlights increasing concerns regarding a power source long hailed as environmentally friendly by environmental activist groups.... Pombo Calls for Changes to Endangered Species Act House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-California) marked the 30th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by pledging to introduce incremental changes designed to facilitate cooperation between citizen-landowners and the federal government. Citing the fact that in the past 30 years very few species have recovered to the point of removal from endangered status, Pombo noted private citizens need more federal cooperation and incentives to create and maintain habitat hospitable to endangered species.... Deputies shoot, kill mountain lion near elementary school Sheriff's deputies shot and killed a mountain lion near an elementary school Friday after a golfer reported being stalked by the animal. The incident began about 9 a.m. when the golfer heard a rustling in bushes behind him and came face-to-face with a mountain lion four feet away, said sheriff's Sgt. Peggy Frailey. Three deputies kept the animal contained in the brush until officers from the state Department of Fish and Game arrived about an hour later and advised deputies to shoot and kill the animal, said Lt. Mike Ference of the state agency.... Splintered sage grouse group seeks outside help The Gunnison Sage Grouse Working Group (GSGWG), formed in 1995, is a model for a collaborative, community-driven process. It is comprised of a diverse group of individuals, committed to restoring the Gunnison Sage Grouse population. They have worked through tough issues and used consensus to develop, implement, and evaluate a conservation plan while increasing public awareness of the vulnerable and unique bird species that calls the Gunnison Basin home. But there is a catch: the sage grouse populations are continuing to shrink in numbers in spite of the group’s conservation plan; populations have declined by 30 percent in the last two years. And the GSGWG is fragmented, with members disagreeing over what needs to be done, which has threatened the continued existence of the group. Divisive issues for the group include the role cattle grazing on public lands plays in effecting sage grouse, and what strategies could be used to mitigate the impact of grazing. In addition, the group disagrees on the need for federal listing of the sage grouse as an endangered species and is concerned with the effects that may bring, particularly to private landowners.... E-Mail Blast Seeks Data on Bush Plans For Public Lands An advocacy group that opposes President Bush's environmental policies e-mailed nearly 60,000 Interior Department employees Thursday to seek help in identifying White House initiatives that could threaten national parks and wilderness areas. Peter Altman, director of the Campaign to Protect America's Lands, said the goal of the e-mail blast was to help detect federal rule changes sought by industry that the administration might more vigorously pursue if Bush faces a tough reelection contest.... Utah Oil and Gas Leases Stir Criticism The Bush administration has moved ahead with its plan to auction oil and gas leases on environmentally sensitive lands in Utah, reaping millions of dollars from broad swaths of lands near a national monument. A detailed analysis of the leases auctioned to date, conducted by the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy group that opposed the leases, found that they encompass dozens of critical wildlife habitats that are now open for development. In many cases, the leases were purchased by contributors to President Bush's reelection campaign.... Wildlife, Gas Fields Squeeze Into a Key Migratory Corridor The cluster of mule deer munching on sagebrush peeking out of the snow seems unfazed by the screeching, whooshing and clanging from the drilling rig less than 100 feet away. But as they quietly graze on this wind-swept plateau in southwestern Wyoming, these animals are at the center of an intensifying tug of war over the fate of vast stretches of federal land in the Rocky Mountains. Their chosen feeding spot on this frigid winter day, the Pinedale Anticline, has been a crucial winter range and migratory corridor for big game for thousands of years. During the winter, it hosts Serengeti-like congregations of animals — some 100,000 mule deer, pronghorn, moose, elk and bighorn sheep. In the last few years, it has also become a booming natural gas field, supplying clean energy to heat and cool houses and fuel electric power plants in California and elsewhere in the West.... Lake Powell in peril? If the continuing drought in the West doesn't end soon, water experts say you can imagine the unimageinable. Lake Powell, the 25 million acre-foot reservoir formed by Glen Canyon Dam in 1968, is now less than half full. It's not a philosophical question about the reservoir being half empty or half full. It didn't fill up last year. Since the drought of 2002, it's draining faster than it's filling. While water experts admit there are lot of "ifs" in their calculations, they are beginning to get concerned. Eagle County's Eagle River is a tributary of the Colorado River. If the drought, now in its third year, continues at current rates -and forecasts vary - the huge lake could be drained by 2010, leaving Colorado to supply 7.5 million acre-feet it agreed to supply downstream states under the 1922 Colorado River Interstate Compact.... Slaughterville Declines Proposal to Become Veggieville In recent years, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the animal rights group, has asked the cities of Rodeo, Calif., Hamburg, N.Y., and Fishkill, N.Y., to switch to more "animal friendly" names. All refused. Two weeks ago, in yet another defeat to the organization's renaming efforts, officials declined to change their town's name from Slaughterville to Veggieville, Okla.... Estelle Reel, forgotten Frontier politician She campaigned across the prairie with the best of the men, dancing through scandal. Her political acumen made her the highest-ranking woman of her day to serve in the federal government, and when she got to Washington, D.C., she wore a $2,000 Parisian gown. In 1895, Estelle Reel became the first woman in the nation to be elected to statewide office. She promoted herself with finesse, eventually earning a federal appointment from President McKinley. In 1894, Reel sent campaign brochures containing her photograph to voters throughout Wyoming, reportedly causing numerous cowboys to ride as many as sixty miles to cast their ballots for the pretty woman candidate. She traveled with her Republican counterparts -- all men -- throughout the state on stagecoaches, on horseback, and in wagons to speak to voters, often dancing with them at the dances held following political rallies.... A Hummer Alongside a Horse? The Rodeo Must Be in Houston The caravans of trail riders have streamed into the city with their covered wagons and horses, the carnival lights are aglow and the air is smoky with barbecue fires. It's rodeo time in Houston, when Texas comes to town. And so, Friday night nearly 4,800 trail riders with more than 200 wagons converged on Houston from 14 distant points, traveling historic trails of the pioneers. It is a tradition that began in 1952 when a rodeo official, stymied by bad weather that grounded his flight, vowed never to attend another Houston livestock show "where I couldn't ride my horse home.".... On The Edge Of Common Sense: Unless I'm in New Zealand, I'll order American lamb I was in a nice restaurant in California recently. The menu included sumptuous entrees that featured ribeye steak and filet mignon. I noticed they also offered gourmet lamb chops. I asked, as I always do, if it was American lamb or imported from New Zealand. The waitress didn't know, so the owner came out. She said it was imported from New Zealand. We had a discussion. She gave no ground, even saying that she preferred the imported lamb because it didn't have that 'gamey' taste. She had no feeling, sympathetic, patriotic, isolationist, political, or otherwise for supporting American sheep producers. She was a businesswoman....