NEWS ROUNDUP

House Votes to Keep Offshore Drilling Ban The House rejected an attempt late Thursday to end a quarter-century ban on oil and natural gas drilling in 85 percent of the country's coastal waters despite arguments that the new supplies are needed to lower energy costs. Lawmakers from Florida and California led the fight to maintain the long-standing drilling moratorium, contending that energy development as close as three miles from shore would jeopardize multibillion-tourism industries. The moratorium bars oil and gas development in virtually all coastal waters outside the western Gulf of Mexico, where most of the country's offshore oil and gas wells are concentrated. A measure, offered by Putnam and Rep. Lois Capps, D-Calif., to continue the prohibition on drilling for natural gas which some lawmakers argued was less of an environmental threat than oil was approved 217-203 and inserted into a $25.9 billion Interior Department spending bill....
Oil-patch study of cattle eases some fears A long-awaited $17-million study on cattle health and oil and gas emissions in Western Canada has provided some reassuring answers while raising a new batch of concerns in the oil patch. For the interprovincial study, the largest on-farm research project of its kind, a collection of blue-ribbon scientists looked at how air contaminants affect reproductive success and general cattle health downwind of oil and gas facilities. The work took place from 2001 to 2003, and involved 33,000 cattle from 205 herds. The 716-page report says the scientists found no links between increased risk for stillbirths, abortions and unsuccessful pregnancies and chronic low-level exposure to sulphur dioxide or volatile organic compounds, such as benzene. The researchers did not examine data on the effects of sour gas or hydrogen sulphide on reproductive health in cattle as thoroughly or on two key reproductive indicators. However, the study did find a number of surprising associations between oil and gas pollution and cattle health. For example, it found that newly born calves exposed to high levels of sulphur dioxide had death rates 1.4 times higher than those exposed to lower concentrations. It also documented severe immune function changes in calves inhaling low amounts of benzene and toluene. Newborns exposed to sour gas, a highly toxic compound found in a third of all natural gas supplies, needed more medication than non-exposed calves....
Landowners have questions about request for water well permits Landowners have questions about a company's request for 21 water well permits in an oil field where nearly 1 million gallons of salt water spilled from a cracked pipe earlier this year. The State Water Commission, which must approve the permits, has been asked to schedule a public hearing on the requests from Zenergy Inc. The Tulsa, Okla.,-based company is drilling in the Foreman Butte oil field west of Alexander. Zenergy has 10 temporary permits for water wells and wants them made permanent, along with permits for 11 new wells. It uses the well water to dilute highly concentrated salt water that comes up with the oil, to try to prevent equipment problems. The Foreman Butte oil field, estimated to be about 9,000 feet deep, is known for its salty water. The spill in January sent toxic water into Charbonneau Creek, killing creek life and forcing ranchers to move their cattle for more than two months. The creek empties into the Yellowstone River, but officials said the Yellowstone did not appear to have been harmed by the spill. Landowners want to know how the 21 wells sought by Zenergy would affect groundwater that supplies their cattle....
Column: Out-of-state animal rights activists slopping hogwash on Arizonans New York-based Farm Sanctuary has an extreme political agenda they hope to impose on Arizona. We're talking about out-of-state animal rights activists and the ballot measure they want us to support in November. Their goals have little to do with protecting animals and the environment and everything to do with reducing production and consumption of meat products grown by Arizona and American farmers. Do not be fooled, hogwash is hogwash. The hogwash they are feeding you is that Arizona farmers do not treat their animals humanely or protect the environment because of modern and safer animal confinement practices. They will play on your emotions. They ignore decades of sound science. And they smear anyone who doesn't share their radical views, all to promote their extreme animal rights agenda. They did it in Florida in 2002. Now they've come to Arizona....
Trapper Kills Suspect Gator A trapper killed an 11-foot, 5-inch alligator Thursday morning that appears to be the reptile that killed a 23-year-old woman who was snorkeling in Juniper Creek on Sunday. The male alligator was caught on the fourth large hook baited with beef lung and left along the creek east of Lake George overnight, 300 to 400 yards from where Annmarie Campbell was killed. The body of Campbell, an artist from Paris, Tenn., and a former Marion County resident, was pulled from the reptile's jaws by her ex-stepfather and another man. The large alligator has marks on its snout as if it had been in a confrontation and has a stab wound in its right eyelid....
Young promises reprisal for vote on Tongass The House voted Thursday to prohibit the Forest Service from spending federal funds to build new logging roads in the Tongass National Forest. The Forest Service has lost an average of $40 million a year -- and $48 million last year -- to subsidize a dying logging industry that employs only 300 Alaskans, the sponsors of the measure said. "Think of that: (for) every job, $150,000 in taxpayer subsidies for that one job," said Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio. He said he's all for logging "but not when the taxpayers are being ripped off." The vote was 237-181. Most of the Democrats and 68 Republicans voted for it. Alaska Congressman Don Young said he was "adamantly opposed to this sneaky amendment." He said it violated the spirit of representative government, because it affects only his state, and he didn't want it. Taking a page from Sen. Ted Stevens' playbook, Young said he would make note of who voted against him and retaliate in future legislation. "Each one of you, think about this, in this room: This should be a representative form of government, and what you're doing is dead wrong, and I shall not forget it," he said....
Fire-defense costs searing o protect people from wildfire and restore the forests' health, a report released Thursday estimates 1.5 million acres in 10 Front Range counties must be "treated" by tree thinning and prescribed burns. The price tag: At an average cost of more than $400 an acre, treatment could hit $15 million annually for 40 years - or a total tab of $600 million. "The numbers are overwhelming," said Rocky Mountain regional forester Rick Cables. Pay now or pay later, Cables said, pointing out that Colorado's largest fire - the 138,000-acre Hayman in 2002 - cost $240 million in firefighting, economic losses and rehabilition. The money, he said, instead could have been used to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. The Front Range Fuels Partnership Roundtable, a consortium of 30 organizations formed in 2002 after the state's worst fire season, spent two years developing 10 recommendations on how to focus and speed up the work....
White House wants limits on competitive sourcing out of funding bill The Bush Administration wants Congress to alter language in pending appropriations legislation that prevents several key agencies—such as the Agriculture and Interior departments—from participating in certain E-government initiatives and limits the agency’s use of competitive sourcing. H.R. 5386, the Department of the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal 2007, precludes the agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, from spending more than $3.4 million on competitive sourcing programs without first submitting a proposal to the congressional appropriations committees detailing a reprogramming of funds proposal. USDA’s Forest Service may not use more than $2.5 million for competitive sourcing activities, but is exempt from having to send a report. The language also prohibits the agencies from using funds in the bill for E-government projects like SAFECOM, a program led by the Homeland Security Department to improve public safety response among all levels of government, and Disaster Management....
Lightning brings rash of wildfires As predicted, the drought, combined with an abundance of natural fuels in the Gila National Forest and a rash of recent lightning strikes, have produced the first series of wildfires for the season. Nine blazes were reported burning throughout the forest Wednesday afternoon. Five of the fires were being staffed by a total of about 75 wildland firefighters and crews, including the Silver City and Gila Hotshot crews, seven forest service engines, a helicopter based in Reserve and a C-130 slurry tanker plane. Smokejumpers, who had just practiced a jump early Wednesday morning, were dispatched in their twin-engine Otter later in the afternoon to jump one of the blazes, officials said. Fire management officials at the local, state and federal level have been predicting an active fire season since the beginning of the year. Lightning storms that passed through the area on Monday night are blamed for the new blazes. Three fires were discovered on the Quemado Ranger District, four on the Reserve, one on the Black Range and one on the Glenwood Ranger District....
House panel's vote endangers Utah's wildlife protection plan A little over six months after Utah and other states submitted action plans to the Interior Department designed to keep at-risk wildlife off the Endangered Species List, a congressional committee has approved a budget that would slash federal funding for those state programs. The House Appropriations Committee this week approved an $18.5 million cut in state wildlife grant programs, a move, that if enacted, could cost Utah's Division of Wildlife Resources nearly $320,000 - almost a 40 percent cut from the originally proposed budget. And those reductions actually slice even deeper because much of that federal money is used to leverage funding from other sources. Though Capitol Hill battles remain to be fought - 170 representatives and 56 senators have signed a bipartisan letter urging the funding be restored - Utah wildlife officials say the long-term prognosis isn't good....
Researchers can't confirm rediscovery of ivory-billed woodpecker Three seasons of searching still have not produced the icon that would forever settle the dispute: a single photograph of a clearly identifiable ivory-billed woodpecker. "We probably wouldn't be truthful if we said we weren't a little disappointed. We've put a lot of effort into this," Cornell University researcher Ron Rohrbaugh said Thursday. Last year Cornell researchers stunned bird-lovers everywhere by announcing that the ivory-bill had been rediscovered after 60 years, by happenstance, in an Arkansas swamp. Before that, the magnificent bird was thought to have vanished along with the stately hardwood forests of the southern United States where it had flourished for centuries. Cornell, this nation's Citadel of ornithology in bucolic Ithaca, N.Y., said Thursday that it still believes the ivory-bill was spotted two years ago, but it no longer plans to go on spending $1 million a year, mostly from private donations but including some federal funds, to prove it. Critics say the inability to get a photograph of the bird supports their doubts about Cornell's original announcement. Before it ended last month, the most recent effort to locate the woodpecker involved 20 full-time biologists and more than 100 amateur volunteers, plus all the technology Cornell could muster: automatic sound recorders and camouflaged time-lapse cameras hidden deep in the forest, laser rangefinders, GPS units, even ultralight aircraft....
Environmentalists divided on Bush immigration plan Environmentalists are split over the impact of the Bush administration's plan to protect the southwestern U.S. border against illegal immigration while other groups are ignoring the debate altogether. The Center for Biological Diversity says sending in the National Guard, construction of border walls, low-flying aircraft and new roads will harm the desert environment and affect endangered species. Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and former Sierra Club director, says immigration leads to an explosive growth in population, which the environment cannot sustain. The heavy hitters on the environmental scene, however, are sitting on the sidelines of the policy battle including the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, Environmental Defense Fund, Friends of the Earth and the World Wildlife Fund....
Wolf foes howl at state managers Sheep, elk and dog carcasses, bones, skulls and wolf tracks the size of a human head—that's what two Croy Canyon residents claim is scattered around their property six miles west of Hailey. "Our dogs were bitten by wolves at three o'clock in the afternoon," said Jennifer Swigert, who lives with her husband Kevin, a fifth generation Idahoan, in a remote area of Croy Canyon. "I love animals, I always have, but this is insane—people are at a total risk of getting fanged up." The Swigerts, who attended a wolf management meeting Wednesday night with Idaho Fish and Game officials in Hailey, claim wolf numbers are growing in Croy Canyon and the animals are becoming increasingly aggressive towards dogs, horses, and humans....
Gillett pledges he'll rid Idaho of wolves Ron Gillett is determined to rid Idaho of wolves, and he's pledged that he won't quit until he's accomplished that goal. Gillett, the president of the Idaho Anti-Wolf Coalition, unsuccessfully tried to place the issue on the November 2006 ballot. To do so he needed 47,881 signatures from registered Idaho voters. He claims he collected about 40,000 signatures, but only about 13,500 were from registered voters. "On this first go-around we didn't tell anybody we were going to get the signatures, we said we'll try," Gillette said. "Mark my word, on this second go-around we will get it, no question." Gillett, who lives in Stanley and owns the Triangle C Ranch lodge, said wolves are the "most cruel, vicious predators in North America," and that he's concerned about the safety of his grandchildren. He added that wolves depredate livestock and are decimating elk herds, which is ruining his livelihood....
Going to the birds An evidentiary hearing in the state's lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management over its oil and gas drilling plans for Otero Mesa took a closer look at the federal agency's provisions to protect the aplomado falcon. U.S. District Court Judge Bruce D. Black held Wednesday's hearing to examine whether the BLM consulted and planned adequately for the impact their plans could have on the raptor's habitat. In June 2003, when the BLM was still evaluating its options for oil and gas development on the stretch of Chihuahuan Desert grassland, it said it needed to consult formally with the Fish and Wildlife Service because drilling was ''likely to adversely affect'' the bird of prey. In September of the same year, the agency reversed that opinion. Andrew Smith, a U.S. Department of Justice attorney representing the BLM, has said the BLM did consult, albeit informally, with the Fish and Wildlife Service and that the few documented falcon sightings in the Otero Mesa area did not warrant changes to the BLM's contested plan. The testimony of Joy Nicholopoulos, former head of ecological services for the Fish and Wildlife Service in New Mexico, confirmed his claims, and noted decision reversals are not unusual for federal agencies....
Predators Causing Big Losses to Livestock Farmers Cattle and calf losses from animal predators and non-predator causes in the United States totaled 4.05 million head in 2005, USDA's National Agriculture Statistics Service reported. Cattle and calf losses from animal predators totaled 190,000 head. This represented 4.7 percent of the total losses from all causes and resulted in a loss of $92.7 million to cattle farmers and ranchers. Coyotes and dogs caused the majority of cattle and calf losses accounting for 51.1 percent and 11.5 percent, respectively. Cattle and calf losses from non-predator causes totaled 3.86 million head or 95.3 percent of the total losses. Respiratory problems were the leading cause of non-predator deaths accounting for 28.7 percent, followed by digestive problems at 16.8 percent. Farmers and ranchers throughout the United States spent $199.1 million on non-lethal methods to control predators....
Former Hannibalian tracking Billy the Kid Five years ago former Hannibalian Steve Sederwall moved to New Mexico to begin an investigation to determine if the man buried there in 1881 as Billy the Kid was the real William Bonney. He does not believe that he was. Since then Sederwall and Lincoln County, N.M., Sheriff Tom Sullivan have traveled to several other states to investigate the stories of more than one man who had claimed to be Billy after the death of the one buried as Billy in Lincoln County, N.M. The mystery has not been solved, but Sederwall is currently investigating the life of a John Miller, who had told people he was the real William Bonney. Sederwall explained one more incident that is being investigated. "The Kid's attorney was A.J. Fountain, and he and his 8-year-old son Henry were murdered in Lincoln County. They never found the bodies. We may be able to find those bodies."....
DNA twist to Old West case An answer to the John Wesley Hillmon mystery might be found in the DNA, after all. Work begins early today to identify the coffin's remains at the 127- year-old grave of the man at the center of an epic insurance fraud case. And now, the 11th-hour discovery of a Hillmon descendant could make the job much easier. University of Colorado law professor Mimi Wesson, who is leading the Hillmon exhumation along with CU anthropology professor Dennis Van Gerven, received a surprise e-mail last month from Sandra Hillmon. Hillmon, a rancher from Lawrence born in 1848, was reportedly shot accidentally by his traveling companion March 17, 1879, as the two were making camp near Medicine Lodge, Kan. Because Hillmon was covered by no fewer than three life insurance policies, the companies holding those policies withheld payment, suspecting an attempt at fraud by Hillmon, his wife Sallie, and Hillmon's camp mate. The dispute was the subject of six trials over 20 years, and the case twice reached the U.S. Supreme Court. In the first Supreme Court ruling in Mutual Life Insurance Co. vs. Hillmon, the court in 1892 created what endures today as the "state of mind" exception to the hearsay rule. Hearsay is an out-of-court statement presented in court as true and usually ruled not admissible....