NEWS ROUNDUP

It's humans vs wildlife in booming American West Mary Smith used to consider it charming when she saw the occasional mule deer traipsing through this small Idaho town. That was before herds of the long-eared animals native to this remote mountain region began camping out in her yard, eating everything in sight. "They practically ring the doorbell,'' Smith said of the bucks, does and fawns that have laid waste to thousands of dollars of landscaping. Smith's experience is mirrored in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming where land that once served as wildlife habitat is being converted into housing and commercial developments. The phenomenon is nothing new in urban and suburban America, where high-rises, strip malls and subdivisions long ago sprawled across acreage that used to support wildlife. But in the wide-open spaces of the Northern Rockies, where the deer and the antelope still play, rising conflicts between residents and wildlife are causing fresh consternation....
Bison industry on rise The irony of bison ranching isn't lost on Dave Carter. Recovering the once nearly extinct creatures has required raising them for slaughter. The proof is in the numbers, said Mr. Carter, executive director of the Colorado-based National Bison Association. About 35,000 bison were processed nationwide last year, up 17 percent from 2004. More than 250,000 bison roam ranches across the country. The massive, shaggy animals that once roared across the North American plains by the millions were decimated by widespread slaughter during westward growth, dropping to an estimated 1,000 or fewer by the late 1800s. Still, Mr. Carter concedes the industry likely will remain a bit player. Although the 35,000 bison processed last year was a healthy increase, "the beef industry does more than that before lunch," he said. About 125,000 cattle are processed every day, and the industry is measured in billions. Mr. Carter estimates that annual bison sales amount to $112 million....
MSU grad student studying how methane development affects fish Davis, a Montana State University graduate student, spent May through August collecting information to see how coalbed methane development affects fish. She and technician Ryan White sampled about 6,500 fish in 19 tributaries of the Tongue River, Powder River and Little Powder River. Davis plans to return this summer, possibly with two technicians, to the 54 sites she has already sampled and 15 new sites. All the streams are on private land. "The Powder River Basin in Wyoming and Montana is currently undergoing one of the world's largest coalbed natural gas developments with about 12,000 wells in place in 2003, 14,200 in 2005 and up to 70,000 projected over the next 20 to 30 years," Davis wrote in a project summary. "Because coalbed natural gas development involves production and disposal of large quantities of coalbed ground water that differs from surface waters, potential exists for substantial effects on aquatic ecosystems." High concentrations of dissolved solids, including sodium and bicarbonate ions, are typically found in water associated with coalbed methane, Davis said. Little is known about their effect on fish in the Powder River Basin, however....
Industry: Change won't be dramatic with Jonah drilling Predicted changes to nearby towns from a plan to increase drilling in the Jonah natural gas field should not be as great as a federal environmental report suggests, an oil and gas company official said. The Bureau of Land Management, in its final environmental analysis of the impacts of planned production increases in Jonah Field, said people enjoying small-town life now in Pinedale, Big Piney and other communities would likely be troubled by the influx of new people and the growth if thousands of new wells are allowed. Randy Teeuwen, community relations adviser for EnCana Oil and Gas Inc., said increases in crime, school populations, traffic and noise already exist in communities around Jonah from the gas boom. Any additional changes caused by the booming development will be gradual, Teeuwen said. "Our drilling program is going to be such that there's not all of a sudden going to be a huge increase in activity that people are going to notice," he said. "More rigs and more drilling activity doesn't translate to exponential increases to people and activity. It will be gradual."....
BLM underestimating Jonah Field's impact on air quality, some say Air quality will likely suffer more than federal officials are estimating in their plan for the Jonah natural gas field, some conservationists say. Bruce Pendery, public lands director with the Wyoming Outdoor Council, said the Bureau of Land Management's estimations of air emissions are overly rosy, as the agency assumes operators on the Jonah Field will use newer technology to reduce emissions. Namely, Tier II technology is cited as helpful in reducing air quality impacts around Jonah to 80 percent below original estimates -- a reduction pushed by the Environmental Protection Agency. "The provisions they are making are all tentative, conditional -- anything but binding or certain," Pendery said of the BLM. "They are trying to take credit for things that are at best a possibility. They say Tier II technology will be utilized when it is available, and it's not widely available now. I don't see how they can take credit for something like that."....
Wolves spreading across Bitterroot Valley If you live or recreate in the Bitterroot, Liz Bradley could use your eyes and ears. The state wolf management specialist is charged with keeping track of 15 known wolf packs that roam in an area that runs from Ninemile down through the Bitterroot to Dillon and over to Deer Lodge. And that's not to mention all the new wolves that seem to be cropping up these days. Nearly half of the packs that Bradley tracks are found in or around the Bitterroot Valley. With its close proximity to the Idaho border, Bradley says the area will likely see other wolves dispersing through the area. “There are a lot of wolves in Idaho right now,” she said. “The density is something like 500 to 600 -- we're probably going to see new wolves showing up from Horse Prairie all the way to Superior and De Borgia. It's the same thing that we saw out of Yellowstone.”....
Dead turtle halts dredging he killing of an endangered turtle during dredging for beach restoration temporarily stopped the $21 million project. The remains of a green turtle were found Wednesday in an intake screen of the dredging vessel Bayport, operated by the contractor doing the work, Manson Construction Company of Seattle. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency overseeing the permit for the project, halted the work until it can investigate the incident. "The Corps of Engineers sent a representative on Saturday to inspect the dredge and review the operation," Juan Florensa, director of public works for Longboat Key, said Monday. "Until we hear from the corps, we can't resume dredging." Barry Vorse, spokesman for the Jacksonville office of the Corps of Engineers, said early Monday there probably would be a decision made soon on when the Longboat Key contractor can restart the project....
Working to Make Pelicans Well Again Kevin Lucey spent $500 to save a seabird he had never laid eyes on, and named him Phoenix for his ability to revive. The endangered California brown pelican had been found in November, dying on a beach. He had a cut that ran the length of his pouch, and he weighed 4 pounds — less than half his normal weight. At the International Bird Rescue Research Center in San Pedro, Phoenix has now had two of the three surgeries he will need to survive in the wild. But Lucey has seen the bird only once, when Phoenix was unconscious during his second operation. The center's pelican "adoptions" aim to restore birds to health and freedom — as untouched by humans as possible. Sponsors pay between $200 and $500 to make this possible, even though their adoptive role is largely ceremonial. The money goes toward the birds' care, especially the large quantities of fish they eat daily....
Endangered black-footed ferrets reproduce in wild One of North America's most-endangered species has begun to reproduce in the wild in Colorado and other Western states after being reintroduced, state wildlife officials said Monday. Biologists and volunteers last fall found a female black-footed ferret in northwest Colorado that they deduced was born in the wild because it did not have embedded microchips, according to the Colorado Division of Wildlife. The discovery was a stunning sign that a species once thought extinct is getting a footing on the path to recovery. Since the reintroduction program began in 2001, 186 black-footed ferrets have been reintroduced in the Wolf Creek Management Area, which covers 43,000 acres in Rio Blanco and Moffat counties northeast of Rangely....
Fake fish funeral illustrates Delta water problems The other day a small group of environmentalists gathered near the California Capitol wearing black. The "funeral" honored the dying smelt of the Delta. Who knows how many camera crews, if any, documented the mourning. Yet the scene exemplifies the level of political discourse about the Delta these days. The estuary, one of the most important in the hemisphere for birds and the most important in California for millions of thirsty southlanders, is in horrible shape. The crisis is driving all sides in this debate farther apart when they need to be searching for common ground and solutions. To recap: Fish that live year-round in the Delta, such species as smelt and shad, are disappearing and possibly on a path to extinction. Meanwhile, the state Department of Water Resources is mulling a plan to increase Delta pumping. Those who pump from the Delta have been sticking to their demands that their pumping be absolved from any sanctions by the federal and state Endangered Species Acts. As for the water flow necessary to recover Delta fisheries, that has become "extra" water that must be purchased annually on the open market. Those who pump water from the Delta want somebody else to buy and find the water for the fish....
Activists win fight on rights to grazing The Grand Canyon Trust is perfectly qualified to hold grazing rights in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, despite assertions to the contrary. An administrative law judge late last week upheld the Flagstaff, Ariz., environmental group's purchase of monument grazing permits and the process the Bureau of Land Management followed in awarding them - rejecting claims by Kane and Garfield counties and ranching groups that the transactions were illegal. The Grand Canyon Trust offered to relinquish its grazing permits if the BLM ordered them closed as part of its final land-use plan. But with other permit applicants lining up to get those permits, Hedden also told the agency the Grand Canyon Trust would purchase cattle and begin grazing them if the BLM declared the permits open. When that happened, the environmental group withdrew the relinquishment offer and purchased a minimal number of cattle to graze the permits. The counties challenged the Trust's ability to withdraw the relinquishment requests. They also argued that the conservation group had no standing as a buyer, both because it was not engaged in grazing and had no "intent to graze." And it challenged the BLM's ability to close grazing permits because of "conservation use." Heffernan struck down virtually all of the claims. The judge ruled that because the Trust never formally submitted relinquishment requests, it had the right "to retain its grazing privileges." Heffernan also wrote that there is no statutory language which imposes an "intent to graze test" on applicants or stipulates that they must be a grazing entity. And he upheld the agency's ability to close off "areas of environmental concern" under its multiple use mandate....
Families want to work with Park Service to retain use of cabins Stuart Sivertson's grandfather began commercial fishing on Isle Royale in the 1890s. For decades, Severin Sivertsen hauled in tons of lake trout, whitefish and herring from the reefs surrounding the island, which became a national park in 1940. Commercial fishermen and their families once lived on the island, as did miners, summer vacationers and the cottage crowd. Primitive cabins and camps once dotted the shores. Today, the only permanent residents on the mostly wilderness island are moose and wolves. But the families of the island's settlers are hoping to forge a partnership with the National Park Service that would allow them to use the cabins their grandfathers built. ``We can help other people enjoy the island,'' said Sivertson, 65. He visits the island every summer, and enjoys working with the last active commercial fishery there. About 30 members of the Isle Royale Families and Friends Association gathered in Duluth this weekend to begin forging a partnership with the National Trust for Historic Preservation to retain their place in history. They argue that families who built primitive cabins on the island before it became a national park are part of the island's cultural history and deserve to stay....
Canyon overflights get open house -- again Two decades and multiple lawsuits after Congress ordered natural quiet restored to the Grand Canyon, the Park Service announced Wednesday it is seeking new suggestions for how to do it. Commercial pilots, tribes and environmentalists are hoping this time will be the charm in resolving a longstanding dispute about whether there is too much noise over the Grand Canyon and, if so, what to do about it. Air tour routes, flight schedules and other regulations that will ultimately determine the fortunes of those who make a living flying over the canyon are up for negotiation. A decision is expected in 2008. Previous negotiations have failed amid lawsuits and turf wars between the Park Service and Federal Aviation Administration....
Liberals' Energy Policy: Obstruct Supply, Marvel at Price High energy costs are a mystery. It seems like no matter how much we prohibit domestic energy production, energy prices just keep going up -- and we just keep getting more dependent on foreign sources. There is no law of economics that can explain it, no hypothetical relationship between supply and demand that could predict price. Bill O’Reilly must be right. High prices must be the result of a secret plot by big oil, or perhaps the freemasons. Well, that’s one explanation. Or we could consider a radical alternative: energy prices are high because Americans object to every possible source of energy known to mankind. Energy, it seems, is icky. Not so icky that we want to use less of it, mind you. But icky enough that we don’t want to make it ourselves. Instead, we fantasize about utopian energy sources of “the future,” and pay through the nose today for limited supplies of foreign energy that originate in the most backward, unstable, and faraway places imaginable. For example, there is oil off the coast of California, but we will not drill for it for fear of disrupting Barbra Streisand’s Feng Shui. We pretend that it is concern for the environment that stops the drilling, but does anyone really believe that it is more dangerous to transport oil for a few miles from an offshore rig to the coast than it is to transport oil from 10,000 miles away to the same coast?....
Military eyes more state airspace The Air Force has proposed creating a military operations area in the skies over eastern Nevada, sparking concern among local government and business leaders that airspace restrictions could pull the plug on two power plants and a wind farm. The plan to add a 2,400-square-mile training zone over White Pine and Elko counties would tighten the military's grasp of Nevada skies, where experts estimate as much as half the airspace is subject to government flight controls. Down below, some Nevada officials fear the new training area might jeopardize plans for coal-fired plants, a wind farm and a 250-mile transmission line that could unify the state's electricity grid while delivering a jolt to the region's sluggish economy. "The county would like to see that (military) proposal dropped," said White Pine economic development coordinator Karen Rajala. Ely Airport Manager Dan Callaghan pronounced the Air Force plan "devastating." Officials at Hill Air Force Base in Utah said commercial flights would be limited during F-16 fighter jet training missions. Exercises would be scheduled when pilots' usual practice site at the Utah Test and Training Range is being used for cruise missile tests, they said....
New Deal Eases Fines for Farms That Pollute The Bush administration will exempt thousands of farms that raise poultry, cattle and hogs from heavy fines for fouling the air and water with animal excrement in exchange for data to help curb future pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency has signed agreements with 2,681 animal feeding operations in the egg, chicken, turkey, dairy and hog industries. They would be exempt from having to pay potential fines of up to $27,500 a day for violations either in the past or over the next four years. On Monday, the agency said its Environmental Appeals Board had approved the first 20 of those agreements, selecting accords it thought were representative of the whole. Ten are with swine-raising operations and 10 with operations that raise egg-laying birds. The board said it had determined that the agreements were consistent with the Clean Air Act. Agency officials said the approvals set the stage for the remaining agreements to gain approval quickly....
New film shows Lewis and Clark's impact on Nez Perce A new documentary aims to show that the Lewis and Clark Expedition not only left a lasting footprint on America 200 years ago, but made a dramatic impression on the lives of the Nez Perce people in Idaho. The 28-minute documentary, "Surviving Lewis and Clark: the Nimiipuu Story," describes the Corps of Discovery from the perspective of native people who encountered the explorers as they headed for the Pacific. It recreates the first meeting betweent the visitors and the tribe, as well as the impact of the visit over the two centuries since then. Tribal members say it's not just another documentary about the trek by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and their support staff. The $50,000 film was produced through a National Park Service grant matched by the college and the Nez Perce National Historic Trail....
It's All Trew: Technology opens many doors During the last 100 years many things have changed our lives and the way we operate. One of the most drastic changes, especially among rural folks, came when four-legged horsepower changed to gasoline power. At first glance, farmers merely changed from horses to tractors and city people changed from buggies to automobiles. A deeper study shows the changes went much deeper and more drastic as normal occupations and trades became obsolete and no longer needed. To survive, lifelong tradesmen had to learn a different trade or change their often “handed-down” occupation. For example, livery stables, harness makers and farriers were no longer needed. Old-time horse traders and businesses selling wagons, wagon parts and horse-drawn machinery were suddenly left with obsolete inventory and disinterest by former customers. The changes came so suddenly many formerly successful business men went broke before realizing the changes were permanent....