NEWS ROUNDUP

Livestock operators subject to EPA scrutiny The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is turning its attention from factory emissions to farmers and ranchers. A two-year study begun earlier this year aims to determine just how badly livestock operations pollute the environment. When the study is complete, the EPA will start cracking down on livestock production emissions such as ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, volatile organic compounds and dust - the same factory pollutants the EPA now regulates. While swine, poultry and dairy farmers will face the most EPA inspections, Bob Thaler, South Dakota State University Extension swine specialist, said that all large farms and ranches need to be aware of the regulations. Farmers and ranchers can protect themselves from liability as far back as 2002 by signing the voluntary Air Quality Compliance Agreement. The agreement's cost - a one-time fee of $200 to $500 - will pay for the EPA's farm pollution study. Livestock producers have until June 1 to sign the agreement. Signing is not an admission of guilt for prior violations....
Activists attack 'federal tyranny' A livestock group and state's rights activists long at odds with federal land managers are going after the Bureau of Land Management with a billboard condemning "Federal Tyranny." The Nevada Livestock Association and Nevada Committee for Full Statehood are taking aim at a BLM proposal to expand its law enforcement powers. Their new billboard, along Interstate 80 some 200 miles northeast of Reno, shows a photograph of a BLM agent holding a protester at gunpoint. It refers passers-by to a Web site, www.byebyeblm.org. "We're trying to get the word out to the public to just say 'No' to federal BLM law enforcement," said Jean Voigts of Genoa, a member of the livestock association....
Activists Must Prove Harm to Species, Not Just Allege It, to Invoke Endangered Species Act In an important victory for western property owners, the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled for Pacific Legal Foundation, and Idaho rancher Verl Jones’ family, in a closely watched case that addresses the standard by which injunctions can be issued under the Endangered Species Act. The Ninth Circuit’s ruling clarifies—for the first time—that environmental plaintiffs must present actual evidence that a species is likely to be harmed before an injunction can be issued against a property owner, and that a lack of evidence of past harm is indicative of the likelihood of future harm. For years, environmental plaintiffs have been able to get injunctions ordering private property owners to cease legal activity on their land on the basis of mere allegations alone. PLF has long argued, as it did in the Joneses’ case, that there must be an evidentiary showing of real harm to a species before a court can issue an injunction that would result in serious economic harm to the property owner. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. “The court said environmentalists have to prove their case, not just allege it,” said Russ Brooks, managing attorney for Pacific Legal Foundation’s Pacific Northwest Center. “The court’s decision means that environmental activists can no longer use the Endangered Species Act as a weapon against property owners without a shred of evidence that any species is actually being harmed.”....
Are aging air tankers heading back too soon? As fire season approaches, there are worries about the future of the nation's air tanker fleet, especially after an aging fire fighting plane crashed in California just last week. Critics say pressure by the U.S. Forest Service may have helped push the planes back in the air too soon after they were grounded. Ever since a C-130 crashed three years ago killing the three people on board, the old tanker fleet has been grounded time and time again as experts try to determine if the planes are airworthy....
Forest Service may acquire more tankers like one in Calif crash Despite a fatal air tanker crash in Northern California last week, the government may seek to acquire more of the same kind of tanker to bolster its firefighting capability, the director of U.S. forest policy said Tuesday. Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey said the plan to acquire more P-3 Orions would be re-evaluated in light of the crash that killed three pilots April 20 in the Lassen National Forest. But he said there was no indication the plane suffered structural failure in flight. He said it would take a couple months to make a final decision. And he reiterated that the government's longer-term plan is to assemble a firefighting fleet dependent more on helicopters and less on the large fixed-wing tankers that can drop huge amounts of fire retardant on blazes. Rey told lawmakers that whatever the decision about acquiring more P-3s, the government would have adequate resources for the 2005 fire season. Above-average fire activity is possible in the northwest and northern Rocky Mountain states later this summer while significant fire activity is expected in the southern parts of Arizona and New Mexico, Rey said....
Wyoming Range reopens to drilling A portion of the Wyoming Range west of Pinedale that was at the center of a leasing controversy last fall will be eligible for energy development, Bridger-Teton National Forest officials announced Tuesday. The eligible area covers 44,600 acres in 38 parcels, a number scaled down considerably from the 175,000 acres and 99 parcels previous eyed for development. Among the acres eliminated in the latest round are roadless areas. Last September, members of the public criticized forest officials for their plan to lease the entire 175,000-acre area that included popular recreation spots and elk habitat. U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., called the area "inappropriate for drilling" because of its proximity to Grand Teton National Park and the heavily developed Upper Green River area. Gov. Dave Freudenthal said leasing needs to occur in a "deliberate fashion that takes into account all the impact it brings."....
Editorial - ATV Explosion: Teach riders to respect Mother Nature A lone mounted figure rides into the sunset, silhouetted against a jagged horizon and an endless sky. It's a John Wayne moment in the West. But these days, the rider is more likely to be saddled atop an ATV than a horse. The explosion of all-terrain vehicles in Utah has left managers of the public lands scrambling to keep up with the stampede. They're trailing badly, and that pleases neither the riders nor the environmentalists who warn of the damage that off-highway joyrides inflict upon the land. The solution seems simple enough. Designate trails, then persuade riders to stay on them. Enforce the law against those who don't. But, as usual, it's not that simple....
Michigan to cull UP's growing wolf population The state Department of Natural Resources announced plans Tuesday to trap and kill as many as 20 of the Upper Peninsula's burgeoning population of gray wolves this summer in an attempt to limit attacks on domestic livestock and pets. DNR officials said their goal is to assure a healthy future for wolves in Michigan, which might otherwise be threatened by public backlash against wolves in backyards and farm fields. Todd Hogrefe, DNR endangered species coordinator, said wolves have attacked three dogs in recent weeks, including one chained up in its yard near Pelkie, near the base of the Keweenaw Peninsula....
Game, Fish panel votes on grizzlies The Wyoming Game and Fish Commission on Tuesday voted to revise the state's grizzly bear management plan to establish a population goal and clarify that grizzlies will be discouraged from inhabiting areas with significant human populations. The commission's unanimous vote came after staff assurances that the proposed changes were offered after consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which holds jurisdiction over the estimated 600 grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, most of which are in Wyoming. The service is proposing removal of federal protection for Yellowstone-area grizzlies and turning management over to wildlife officials in Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. Barring lawsuits, that plan could come to fruition by the end of the year....
Wolves den on lambing ground Members of the Thoman Ranch family, with headquarters just below Fontenelle Dam north of Kemmerer, know what it's like to have large, federally protected predators preying on their domestic sheep flocks. The Thoman sheep are trucked to the Upper Green River region in July and graze the mountains through September before moving back to lower elevation rangelands for the remainder of the year. The Thomans have had both grizzly bears and gray wolves kill their sheep while on the Bridger-Teton National Forest grazing allotments in recent years. This time, it appears the wolves are coming out to meet the flocks, months ahead of any anticipated confrontation. A pair of wolves is expected to begin denning in the middle of a domestic sheep lambing ground northeast of Farson any day now, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. There are three migratory sheep outfits that use the area for lambing, which begins in early May in western Wyoming....
FWS conducting status review of four springsnail species The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is conducting an in-depth review of the status of four springsnail species, including the endangered Idaho springsnail (Pyrgulopsis idahoensis), a species that occurs in Idaho's Snake River near the CJ Strike Reservoir upstream to Bancroft Springs, Idaho. The Service said it will also review the status of the Harney Lake springsnail from eastern Oregon, the Jackson Lake springsnail from western Wyoming, and the Columbia springsnail from the lower Columbia River, to determine whether they should be listed as threatened or endangered. The review was prompted by two separate petitions concerning the four springsnail species. On June 28, 2004, the Service was petitioned by the Idaho Governor's Office of Species Conservation and Idaho Power Company to delist the Idaho springsnail. The petition was supported by the Bureau of Reclamation. The petition included a peer-reviewed report by Dr. Robert Hershler that suggests the taxonomic status of the Idaho springsnail should be revised. The suggested taxonomic revision would place the four springsnails into one species, Pyrgulopsis robusta....
Kane County, BLM land dispute heats up The Bureau of Land Management on Tuesday gave Kane County two weeks to take down signs it has posted designating roads through federal lands or face legal action, marking an escalating response to the county's continued defiance. Kane County began posting signs in February designating off-road-vehicle (OHV) routes across BLM-administered land, and last month designated a new route through an area northeast of Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park that is being studied for potential wilderness designation. Most recently, BLM officials say, the county has posted an estimated 60 to 80 signs inside the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument along the Hole in the Rock road and its vicinity, directing OHV users into areas that the BLM had previously closed to off-road use, including national historical areas such as the Hole in the Rock trail itself....
Prospect of a Mine Near a Salmon Fishery Stirs Worry in Alaska The Bristol Bay watershed, an intricate system of lakes, streams and rivers that are home to some of the world's greatest salmon runs, is remarkably unchanged by human activity. With only sparse trees, it has not been logged. There are no significant dams and few roads. The only way to get here is by air or boat. "So it's not quite as God made it, but pretty close," said Dr. Thomas Quinn, a fish biologist at the University of Washington who has studied the region for almost 20 years. But Bristol Bay is also an economically depressed region that is home to rich mineral deposits. And prospectors are spending tens of millions of dollars on plans for mining operations across the headwaters of the salmon fishery, which could change the region forever....
Feds to map river plan Seven Western states failed to reach agreement Tuesday on how to manage the mighty Colorado River in times of drought, an impasse that means the federal government will begin crafting its own plan May 1. "We've tried to come to a consensus, but it hasn't been possible for us to do that," said Larry Anderson, director of the Utah Division of Water Resources. Anderson and more than 40 other water officials met in Las Vegas in a last-ditch effort to meet an April 30 deadline imposed by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton. Norton wanted the states to come up with at least the rudiments of a drought- management plan for the river and its two main reservoirs - Lake Powell and Lake Mead. A key issue has been the request by Colorado and three other states to hold more water in Lake Powell this year to help it recover from the drought....
Klamath water--70 percent Farmers in California's Klamath Basin will receive 70 percent of their normal federal water allocation this year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. In addition, the bureau has asked growers to cut their total water use by 15 percent, even though they had donated 100,000 acre-feet of water to the water bank. The reduced allocation is a component of this year's U.S. Bureau of Reclamation operations plan for the Klamath Reclamation Project, which delivers water to Klamath Basin farmers. "It is going to be another challenging year and I think there are some comparisons to 2001, although as of right now it is not going to be a repeat of 2001," said Tulelake Growers Association President Marty Macy, a member of the Modoc County Farm Bureau. "The bottom line is when you have 100,000 acre-feet of water under a management plan that is not well managed, everybody gets hurt, whether it is agriculture, habitat or whatever. We have stepped up as a project and are going to make it work." The bureau's plan is based upon current and expected hydrologic conditions derived from the April 1 inflow forecast by the Natural Resource Conservation Service. It is consistent with the biological opinions issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration....
Environmentalists Seek to Garner Christian Vote When Christians think of "values" issues, they typically think of topics like abortion and marriage. But maybe the environment is starting to creep in as well. The National Association of Evangelicals has come out with its "Evangelical Call to Civic Responsibility," and it emphasizes how it is every Christian's duty to care for the planet and safeguard the environment. And so, both evangelicals and environmentalists acknowledge a changing political landscape. For example, the issues of global warming, clean air, and stricter environmental regulations -- all issues that have been championed by the "radical left" and more mainstream environmentalists in the past -- are now being embraced, to a certain extent, by some in the Christian community....
Riders donate $1,000 for monument JohnD Winters will be 96 years old next month but he didn’t let his age stop him from donning a cowboy hat and boots and joining in the festivities Monday in front of the Nevada State Museum on Carson Street. Winters, a longtime Dayton rancher, was one of the original riders during the Pony Express ride reenactment in 1960. He is the oldest remaining rider from that historic event. Forty-five years later, he says it means a great deal to him that the Pony Express Club of Nevada has donated $1,000 toward refurbishing the ride’s commemorative plaque and monument in Carson City. Bill Goni, 89, of Carson City, reminisced with Winters as the two stood side-by-side at the monument Monday morning. “I brought the stone for this monument all the way from my sheep camp at Tahoe Meadows,” Goni said. “It sort of makes me sad to see how many names have been marked off.” After the reenactment was completed, the Nevada riders decided to form a club to keep the history alive and to increase national interest in the Pony Express, Nevada State Museum spokesman Bob Harmon said....

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