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President-elect Barack Obama will announce the final selections for his Cabinet today, naming Rep. Hilda L. Solis (D-Calif.) as labor secretary and former Dallas mayor Ron Kirk as U.S. trade representative. The two will be in Chicago to be formally announced, along with Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), Obama's choice for transportation secretary. With his selection of Solis, a liberal member of Congress, the president-elect appears to be moving toward his goal of promoting "green-collar jobs" -- those that help promote more energy efficiency, through projects such as retrofitting, something Solis has prioritized during her tenure in Congress. She is better known for her effort on energy issues than for her work on matters relating to labor; she sits on the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Natural Resources Committee, the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, and the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee -- but not the Education and Labor Committee....
Friday, December 19, 2008
EPA Eases Emissions Regulations for New Power Plants
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The Environmental Protection Agency ruled yesterday that new power plants are not required to install technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, rejecting an argument from environmental groups. The ruling, in a memorandum signed by EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson, turns on a seemingly arcane regulatory question that could govern the future of new fossil fuel-burning buildings and power plants under the Clean Air Act. During the Bush administration, the EPA has rejected the idea that greenhouse gases should be regulated like soot, smog precursors and other kinds of air pollution, despite an April 2007 Supreme Court ruling that said carbon dioxide fit the definition of a pollutant that could be regulated under the Clean Air Act. The case at issue yesterday began in 2007 when the EPA issued a permit to a new coal-fired power plant in Bonanza, Utah. The Sierra Club, an environmental group, filed a legal challenge, saying that the permit should have required the plant to control its output of carbon dioxide. In a case before the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, the Sierra Club cited a rule that required plants to use the best available technology to control all "regulated" pollutants, as well as the April 2007 Supreme Court ruling....
The Environmental Protection Agency ruled yesterday that new power plants are not required to install technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, rejecting an argument from environmental groups. The ruling, in a memorandum signed by EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson, turns on a seemingly arcane regulatory question that could govern the future of new fossil fuel-burning buildings and power plants under the Clean Air Act. During the Bush administration, the EPA has rejected the idea that greenhouse gases should be regulated like soot, smog precursors and other kinds of air pollution, despite an April 2007 Supreme Court ruling that said carbon dioxide fit the definition of a pollutant that could be regulated under the Clean Air Act. The case at issue yesterday began in 2007 when the EPA issued a permit to a new coal-fired power plant in Bonanza, Utah. The Sierra Club, an environmental group, filed a legal challenge, saying that the permit should have required the plant to control its output of carbon dioxide. In a case before the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, the Sierra Club cited a rule that required plants to use the best available technology to control all "regulated" pollutants, as well as the April 2007 Supreme Court ruling....
Advocates for Action on Global Warming Chosen as Obama's Top Science Advisers
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President-elect Barack Obama has selected two of the nation's most prominent scientific advocates for a vigorous response to climate change to serve in his administration's top ranks, according to sources, sending the strongest signal yet that he will reverse Bush administration policies on energy and global warming. The appointments of Harvard University physicist John Holdren as presidential science adviser and Oregon State University marine biologist Jane Lubchenco as head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which will be announced tomorrow, dismayed conservatives but heartened environmentalists and researchers. Like Energy Secretary-designate Steven Chu, who directs the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Holdren and Lubchenco have argued repeatedly for a mandatory limit on greenhouse gas emissions to avert catastrophic climate change. In 2007, as chairman of the board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Holdren oversaw approval of the board's first statement on global warming, which said: "It is time to muster the political will for concerted action."....
President-elect Barack Obama has selected two of the nation's most prominent scientific advocates for a vigorous response to climate change to serve in his administration's top ranks, according to sources, sending the strongest signal yet that he will reverse Bush administration policies on energy and global warming. The appointments of Harvard University physicist John Holdren as presidential science adviser and Oregon State University marine biologist Jane Lubchenco as head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which will be announced tomorrow, dismayed conservatives but heartened environmentalists and researchers. Like Energy Secretary-designate Steven Chu, who directs the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Holdren and Lubchenco have argued repeatedly for a mandatory limit on greenhouse gas emissions to avert catastrophic climate change. In 2007, as chairman of the board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Holdren oversaw approval of the board's first statement on global warming, which said: "It is time to muster the political will for concerted action."....
Expansion of Biking in Parks Is Proposed
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Mountain bikers, now barred from most backcountry areas in national parks, could have thousands of miles of trails opened up to them under a rule change proposed Thursday by the Interior Department. The proposal raised tensions between hikers and bikers, who face off against one another on dirt byways all over the country. Each group is burdened with a stereotype that is part true and part myth: thrill-seeking gear heads on one side, plodding leaf peepers on the other, each group accusing the other of not fully appreciating the great out-of-doors. “The question is whether it can be managed well — whether one group doesn’t deprive others of their enjoyment,” said Jeff Ruch, the executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a nonprofit alliance of local, state and federal scientists, law enforcement officers and land managers. In any case, Mr. Ruch added, “it’s a symptom of growing user conflict in the national park system.” The proposal would not take effect until the middle of next year at the earliest, National Park Service officials said, meaning that the Obama administration will decide on the issue. Under the plan, many trail usage decisions would be made at the level of individual parks, rather than at the central National Park Service office. Both sides say that would accelerate trail decisions and probably result in a new arena of discussion — or conflict — at each park headquarters, with administrators being lobbied by the two groups. Existing trails would be the main focus of the change; most proposals for new trails would still have to go through a more lengthy process of review at the Park Service headquarters. Opponents said that the rule change could open up to bicycling millions of acres now designated as potential wilderness (bikes would still be banned in outright wilderness areas), and that changes in usage could affect whether those lands were eventually given permanent wilderness protections by Congress....Under the Bushies there has been an expansion of oil & gas leasing, an expansion of mining, an expansion of timber harvesting and now an expansion of bicycles. And livestock grazing? The headline would be "A Contraction Of Grazing Is Proposed."
Mountain bikers, now barred from most backcountry areas in national parks, could have thousands of miles of trails opened up to them under a rule change proposed Thursday by the Interior Department. The proposal raised tensions between hikers and bikers, who face off against one another on dirt byways all over the country. Each group is burdened with a stereotype that is part true and part myth: thrill-seeking gear heads on one side, plodding leaf peepers on the other, each group accusing the other of not fully appreciating the great out-of-doors. “The question is whether it can be managed well — whether one group doesn’t deprive others of their enjoyment,” said Jeff Ruch, the executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, a nonprofit alliance of local, state and federal scientists, law enforcement officers and land managers. In any case, Mr. Ruch added, “it’s a symptom of growing user conflict in the national park system.” The proposal would not take effect until the middle of next year at the earliest, National Park Service officials said, meaning that the Obama administration will decide on the issue. Under the plan, many trail usage decisions would be made at the level of individual parks, rather than at the central National Park Service office. Both sides say that would accelerate trail decisions and probably result in a new arena of discussion — or conflict — at each park headquarters, with administrators being lobbied by the two groups. Existing trails would be the main focus of the change; most proposals for new trails would still have to go through a more lengthy process of review at the Park Service headquarters. Opponents said that the rule change could open up to bicycling millions of acres now designated as potential wilderness (bikes would still be banned in outright wilderness areas), and that changes in usage could affect whether those lands were eventually given permanent wilderness protections by Congress....Under the Bushies there has been an expansion of oil & gas leasing, an expansion of mining, an expansion of timber harvesting and now an expansion of bicycles. And livestock grazing? The headline would be "A Contraction Of Grazing Is Proposed."
Mont., fed gov't loosen rules on Yellowstone bison
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State and federal officials have agreed to allow bison to migrate into parts of Montana from Yellowstone National Park — a move expected to slow but not stop an annual slaughter of the animals. The agreement carves out two areas next to Yellowstone where bison can winter, ending a long-standing stalemate on the issue. That means at least some bison leaving the park could avoid a widely criticized slaughter program meant to guard against transmissions of a disease, brucellosis, to cattle. "This is a huge step in legally recognizing the bison's right to be outside the park," said Yellowstone Superintendent Suzanne Lewis. More than 3,000 migrating bison have been slaughtered or shot by hunters in recent years, including 1,601 last winter. That practice will continue for bison that migrate beyond the two newly designated areas. Wednesday's action was spurred by a recent Government Accountability Office investigation that sharply criticized the federal government's role in the bison slaughter. Livestock interests had resisted any changes to the slaughter program, while conservationists and bison advocacy groups criticized authorities for being inflexible. Several groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council and Greater Yellowstone Coalition, praised Wednesday's agreement, but others said it did not go far enough....
State and federal officials have agreed to allow bison to migrate into parts of Montana from Yellowstone National Park — a move expected to slow but not stop an annual slaughter of the animals. The agreement carves out two areas next to Yellowstone where bison can winter, ending a long-standing stalemate on the issue. That means at least some bison leaving the park could avoid a widely criticized slaughter program meant to guard against transmissions of a disease, brucellosis, to cattle. "This is a huge step in legally recognizing the bison's right to be outside the park," said Yellowstone Superintendent Suzanne Lewis. More than 3,000 migrating bison have been slaughtered or shot by hunters in recent years, including 1,601 last winter. That practice will continue for bison that migrate beyond the two newly designated areas. Wednesday's action was spurred by a recent Government Accountability Office investigation that sharply criticized the federal government's role in the bison slaughter. Livestock interests had resisted any changes to the slaughter program, while conservationists and bison advocacy groups criticized authorities for being inflexible. Several groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council and Greater Yellowstone Coalition, praised Wednesday's agreement, but others said it did not go far enough....
Ranchers Taking A Stand In Agustin Plains Water Grab
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A group of New Mexico ranchers is spearheading an effort to convince the state Legislature to change the regulations governing the jurisdiction of the Office of the State Engineer. At the Joint Stockman’s Convention last weekend in Albuquerque, two resolutions were passed concerning the attempt by San Agustin Ranch LLC, a New York firm owned by Italian businessman Bruno Modena, to pump the San Agustin aquifer dry in order to sell water back to state entities. Caren Cowan, executive director of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, said the resolutions were voted on by representatives from the cattle growers, wool growers, Cowbelles, dairy farmers and New Mexico Federal Lands Council. “We’re concerned about the lack of authority the Office of the State Engineer has over deep wells,” Cowan said. “As it stands now, the drilling of deep water wells of non-potable water greater than 2,500 feet, exclusive of produced water, is presently outside the Office of the State Engineer’s jurisdiction. The San Agustin Ranch application is for 3,000 feet.” She said the company amended its application to take it out of the State Engineer’s purview. The company’s original application was to receive permission to “divert and consumptively use 54,000 acre-feet, or 17 billion gallons, of water yearly for domestic, livestock, irrigation, municipal, industrial and commercial uses to include providing water to the state of New Mexico to augment its capacity to meet deliveries to the state of Texas at Elephant Butte dam and offsetting effects of ground water pumping on the Rio Grande in lieu of retirement of agriculture via a pipeline to the Rio Grande.” The original plan was to drill 37 wells with 20-inch casings about 2,000 feet deep within the exterior boundaries of Catron County, Socorro County and Augustin Plains Ranch. The amended application requests deeper wells, 3,000 feet, and takes in a wider area that would be affected....
A group of New Mexico ranchers is spearheading an effort to convince the state Legislature to change the regulations governing the jurisdiction of the Office of the State Engineer. At the Joint Stockman’s Convention last weekend in Albuquerque, two resolutions were passed concerning the attempt by San Agustin Ranch LLC, a New York firm owned by Italian businessman Bruno Modena, to pump the San Agustin aquifer dry in order to sell water back to state entities. Caren Cowan, executive director of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, said the resolutions were voted on by representatives from the cattle growers, wool growers, Cowbelles, dairy farmers and New Mexico Federal Lands Council. “We’re concerned about the lack of authority the Office of the State Engineer has over deep wells,” Cowan said. “As it stands now, the drilling of deep water wells of non-potable water greater than 2,500 feet, exclusive of produced water, is presently outside the Office of the State Engineer’s jurisdiction. The San Agustin Ranch application is for 3,000 feet.” She said the company amended its application to take it out of the State Engineer’s purview. The company’s original application was to receive permission to “divert and consumptively use 54,000 acre-feet, or 17 billion gallons, of water yearly for domestic, livestock, irrigation, municipal, industrial and commercial uses to include providing water to the state of New Mexico to augment its capacity to meet deliveries to the state of Texas at Elephant Butte dam and offsetting effects of ground water pumping on the Rio Grande in lieu of retirement of agriculture via a pipeline to the Rio Grande.” The original plan was to drill 37 wells with 20-inch casings about 2,000 feet deep within the exterior boundaries of Catron County, Socorro County and Augustin Plains Ranch. The amended application requests deeper wells, 3,000 feet, and takes in a wider area that would be affected....
Forest staff hopes families will take in wild mustangs
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The Carson National Forest staff hopes parents will consider adopting wild mustangs as presents for their children this year. Thirty-two of the iconic horses recently were gathered from the oversized herd with territory inside Carson National Forest near Bloomfield. The forest service needs to reduce the pressure the herd's grazing puts on forest land. Livestock grazing also is reduced on allotments ranchers have within the wild horses' territory. An 2004 assessment determined the territory can support between 50 to 150 horses, depending on environmental conditions. The most recent equine population estimate puts the herd's size at 428 horses. Efforts to gather the horses are going slow. The forest service planned to gather 93 horses during the fall. Only one-third of that amount, 32 horses, were gathered to date by Mount Taylor Mustangs, the company contracted by the forest service. Eleven of the horses remain available for adoption, including a bay mare whose filly colt is also bay-colored....
The Carson National Forest staff hopes parents will consider adopting wild mustangs as presents for their children this year. Thirty-two of the iconic horses recently were gathered from the oversized herd with territory inside Carson National Forest near Bloomfield. The forest service needs to reduce the pressure the herd's grazing puts on forest land. Livestock grazing also is reduced on allotments ranchers have within the wild horses' territory. An 2004 assessment determined the territory can support between 50 to 150 horses, depending on environmental conditions. The most recent equine population estimate puts the herd's size at 428 horses. Efforts to gather the horses are going slow. The forest service planned to gather 93 horses during the fall. Only one-third of that amount, 32 horses, were gathered to date by Mount Taylor Mustangs, the company contracted by the forest service. Eleven of the horses remain available for adoption, including a bay mare whose filly colt is also bay-colored....
Ogden honored for range restoration
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A Carlsbad woman has been honored for her efforts in restoring rangelands on her family's two ranches in Eddy County and for enlisting other ranchers to do the same on their rangeland. Alisa Ogden, who currently serves as the first woman president of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, was presented the Bureau of Land Management's Restore New Mexico Award in Albuquerque last week. "It was a nice thing to get," Ogden said. "I believe this is only the second year for the award. I'm honored but I didn't do it all alone. I received the award, but it was not just me that did all the work. I was the one (BLM) worked with. I'm just the ranch manager. All the work on Ogden farms and ranches through Restore New Mexico was funded by our family business," Ogden said, clarifying her family's role in leading to her award. "I suggested to my dad and the rest of the family that we partner with the BLM in the Restore New Mexico Program, and the family agreed." Jesse Juen, BLM associate state director, said Ogden has made significant contributions to grassland restoration on her grazing allotments and on adjoining state and private lands. "She's also helped involve other ranchers in Restore New Mexico, a partnership of agencies, landowners and other entities that depend on individuals like Alisa to restore degraded landscapes throughout our state," he said. Ogden's family ranch and farm operation in the Black River area goes back to 1918. Ogden and her family have worked continuously to improve the health of the land. BLM officials said Ogden partnered in the 1980s with the BLM's Carlsbad Field Office on one of the earliest prescribed fires to control invasive shrubs. Since then, several other burns have been conducted on her allotments. Ogden said the relationship between the BLM, farmers and ranchers in Eddy County has come a long way from the acrimonious relationship of the 1970s and early 1980s....
A Carlsbad woman has been honored for her efforts in restoring rangelands on her family's two ranches in Eddy County and for enlisting other ranchers to do the same on their rangeland. Alisa Ogden, who currently serves as the first woman president of the New Mexico Cattle Growers Association, was presented the Bureau of Land Management's Restore New Mexico Award in Albuquerque last week. "It was a nice thing to get," Ogden said. "I believe this is only the second year for the award. I'm honored but I didn't do it all alone. I received the award, but it was not just me that did all the work. I was the one (BLM) worked with. I'm just the ranch manager. All the work on Ogden farms and ranches through Restore New Mexico was funded by our family business," Ogden said, clarifying her family's role in leading to her award. "I suggested to my dad and the rest of the family that we partner with the BLM in the Restore New Mexico Program, and the family agreed." Jesse Juen, BLM associate state director, said Ogden has made significant contributions to grassland restoration on her grazing allotments and on adjoining state and private lands. "She's also helped involve other ranchers in Restore New Mexico, a partnership of agencies, landowners and other entities that depend on individuals like Alisa to restore degraded landscapes throughout our state," he said. Ogden's family ranch and farm operation in the Black River area goes back to 1918. Ogden and her family have worked continuously to improve the health of the land. BLM officials said Ogden partnered in the 1980s with the BLM's Carlsbad Field Office on one of the earliest prescribed fires to control invasive shrubs. Since then, several other burns have been conducted on her allotments. Ogden said the relationship between the BLM, farmers and ranchers in Eddy County has come a long way from the acrimonious relationship of the 1970s and early 1980s....
New US Federal Office to Advise Ag Secretary on Ecosystem Markets
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It took the formation of the Securities and Exchange Commission to create a trustworthy market for securities in the United States, and it took the formation of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to legitimize futures and options trading by offering clear regulations backed by the rule of law. Now, a similar evolution is taking place in ecosystem markets, which supporters believe have the power to save the planets natural resources by identifying their economic value and encouraging Payments for Ecosystem Services. That looks set to change in the United States, where the Department of Agriculture (USDA), under a mandate embedded in the 2008 Farm Bill to promote incentive-based conservation, has announced the formation of an Office of Ecosystem Services and Markets (OESM), which will be headed by USDA Forest Service vet Sally Collins, who has won accolades for introducing market-based mechanisms into the Forest Service's sustainable land management policies. She will report directly to the Secretary of Agriculture, and the new office is charged with providing "administrative and technical assistance to the Secretary in developing the uniform guidelines and tools needed to create and expand markets for these vital ecosystem services," according to a press release posted on the USDA's web site. The OESM will also support the Conservation and Land Management Environmental Services Board, a massive oversight board comprised of the Secretaries of Interior, Energy, Commerce, Transportation, and Defense – as well as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Commander of the Army Corps of Engineers....
It took the formation of the Securities and Exchange Commission to create a trustworthy market for securities in the United States, and it took the formation of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to legitimize futures and options trading by offering clear regulations backed by the rule of law. Now, a similar evolution is taking place in ecosystem markets, which supporters believe have the power to save the planets natural resources by identifying their economic value and encouraging Payments for Ecosystem Services. That looks set to change in the United States, where the Department of Agriculture (USDA), under a mandate embedded in the 2008 Farm Bill to promote incentive-based conservation, has announced the formation of an Office of Ecosystem Services and Markets (OESM), which will be headed by USDA Forest Service vet Sally Collins, who has won accolades for introducing market-based mechanisms into the Forest Service's sustainable land management policies. She will report directly to the Secretary of Agriculture, and the new office is charged with providing "administrative and technical assistance to the Secretary in developing the uniform guidelines and tools needed to create and expand markets for these vital ecosystem services," according to a press release posted on the USDA's web site. The OESM will also support the Conservation and Land Management Environmental Services Board, a massive oversight board comprised of the Secretaries of Interior, Energy, Commerce, Transportation, and Defense – as well as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Commander of the Army Corps of Engineers....
Home, Home on the Web
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I'm not really writing this story from Westcliffe, Colorado. I'm only there digitally, through the magic of Google Maps Street View. Westcliffe is a small town in the Wet Mountain Valley, beneath the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. There's a main street with a few blocks of businesses, oddly named Silver Cliff Ave., after the neighboring town. The 463 residents of Westcliffe, some of them ranchers, are literally home on the range. It's about 7,000 feet (2,133 meters) above sea level, with rodeos and pickup trucks and big homesteads. As you can imagine, part of me wishes I were there. I made several summer trips to the area in the 1990s, when my parents had a cabin outside town. Yes, there are retirees and summer residents with vacation homes around Westcliffe, drawn by the jaw-dropping natural beauty of the area. Westcliffe isn't an untouched idyll by any means. It even has some broadband service. But when I found out that Street View had dramatically increased its coverage of America's byways, I immediately looked for Westcliffe and then was instantly dismayed when I found it. It feels wrong, somehow, that this isolated little town is in the ever-growing grasp of Google -- documented, catalogued, and searchable....
I'm not really writing this story from Westcliffe, Colorado. I'm only there digitally, through the magic of Google Maps Street View. Westcliffe is a small town in the Wet Mountain Valley, beneath the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. There's a main street with a few blocks of businesses, oddly named Silver Cliff Ave., after the neighboring town. The 463 residents of Westcliffe, some of them ranchers, are literally home on the range. It's about 7,000 feet (2,133 meters) above sea level, with rodeos and pickup trucks and big homesteads. As you can imagine, part of me wishes I were there. I made several summer trips to the area in the 1990s, when my parents had a cabin outside town. Yes, there are retirees and summer residents with vacation homes around Westcliffe, drawn by the jaw-dropping natural beauty of the area. Westcliffe isn't an untouched idyll by any means. It even has some broadband service. But when I found out that Street View had dramatically increased its coverage of America's byways, I immediately looked for Westcliffe and then was instantly dismayed when I found it. It feels wrong, somehow, that this isolated little town is in the ever-growing grasp of Google -- documented, catalogued, and searchable....
Burger King launches beef-scented body spray
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Looking to beef up your mojo this holiday season? Burger King Corp. may have just the thing. The home of the Whopper has launched a new men's body spray called "Flame." The company describes the spray as "the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat." The fragrance is on sale at New York City retailer Ricky's NYC in stores and online for a limited time for $3.99. Burger King is marketing the product through a Web site featuring a photo of its King character reclining fireside and naked but for an animal fur strategically placed to not offend....
Looking to beef up your mojo this holiday season? Burger King Corp. may have just the thing. The home of the Whopper has launched a new men's body spray called "Flame." The company describes the spray as "the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat." The fragrance is on sale at New York City retailer Ricky's NYC in stores and online for a limited time for $3.99. Burger King is marketing the product through a Web site featuring a photo of its King character reclining fireside and naked but for an animal fur strategically placed to not offend....
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Salazar at Interior: For Greens, Not a Dream Choice
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Environmentalists have so far been ecstatic over President-elect Barack Obama's Cabinet picks, with some even calling it the green dream team. And when Obama introduced Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar as his new Secretary of the Interior at a news conference in Chicago Wednesday morning, he was likely hoping for the same worshipful reaction. "It's time for a new kind of leadership in Washington that's committed to using our lands in a responsible way to benefit all our families," said Obama. "That is the kind of leadership embodied by Ken Salazar." But not all greens are so sure about the Colorado senator-and Salazar's nomination could represent Obama's first conflict with the environmental community. Although mainstream green groups like Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and the Natural Resources Defense Council were quick to praise Salazar — Dan Grossman, head of EDF's Rocky Mountain office, calls Salazar a "rare talent" — other environmentalists were far less impressed. "His environmental record is pretty mixed," says Kieran Suckling, the executive director of the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity. "He's far from the most anti-environmental guy out there, but he's no environmental hero." The chief complaints about Salazar — a rancher who worked as Colorado's attorney general before his election to the Senate in 2004 — center on his ties to the ranching and mining industries and some of his votes as a Senator. As attorney general he threatened to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — which he would lead as Interior Secretary — over the listing of the black-tailed prairie dog as endangered. (In Colorado, the animal is still classified as a "pest" to ranchers.) A relatively conservative Democrat, typical of the new centrist Western wing of the party, Salazar voted in favor of President George W. Bush's Interior Secretary nominee Gale Norton, who has been roundly criticized for her mismanagement of the beleaguered department. He also supported his friend Alberto Gonzales for U.S. Attorney General, even escorting Gonzales into the U.S. Senate on the first day of his nomination hearings. Although Salazar has since said that he was wrong to support Gonzales, who eventually stepped down after being accused of politicizing the Justice Dept., his critics view the votes as evidence that the Coloradoan lacks judgment. "This is the guy who will be in charge of picking the head of the Fish and Wildlife Department and countless other positions," says Suckling. "If you look at his record for sussing out personal character, it's bad."....
Environmentalists have so far been ecstatic over President-elect Barack Obama's Cabinet picks, with some even calling it the green dream team. And when Obama introduced Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar as his new Secretary of the Interior at a news conference in Chicago Wednesday morning, he was likely hoping for the same worshipful reaction. "It's time for a new kind of leadership in Washington that's committed to using our lands in a responsible way to benefit all our families," said Obama. "That is the kind of leadership embodied by Ken Salazar." But not all greens are so sure about the Colorado senator-and Salazar's nomination could represent Obama's first conflict with the environmental community. Although mainstream green groups like Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and the Natural Resources Defense Council were quick to praise Salazar — Dan Grossman, head of EDF's Rocky Mountain office, calls Salazar a "rare talent" — other environmentalists were far less impressed. "His environmental record is pretty mixed," says Kieran Suckling, the executive director of the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity. "He's far from the most anti-environmental guy out there, but he's no environmental hero." The chief complaints about Salazar — a rancher who worked as Colorado's attorney general before his election to the Senate in 2004 — center on his ties to the ranching and mining industries and some of his votes as a Senator. As attorney general he threatened to sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — which he would lead as Interior Secretary — over the listing of the black-tailed prairie dog as endangered. (In Colorado, the animal is still classified as a "pest" to ranchers.) A relatively conservative Democrat, typical of the new centrist Western wing of the party, Salazar voted in favor of President George W. Bush's Interior Secretary nominee Gale Norton, who has been roundly criticized for her mismanagement of the beleaguered department. He also supported his friend Alberto Gonzales for U.S. Attorney General, even escorting Gonzales into the U.S. Senate on the first day of his nomination hearings. Although Salazar has since said that he was wrong to support Gonzales, who eventually stepped down after being accused of politicizing the Justice Dept., his critics view the votes as evidence that the Coloradoan lacks judgment. "This is the guy who will be in charge of picking the head of the Fish and Wildlife Department and countless other positions," says Suckling. "If you look at his record for sussing out personal character, it's bad."....
Green groups divided over choice of Salazar to head Interior
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...Jon Marvel, executive director of the Western Watersheds Project, called the appointment "a travesty" and said Salazar "will completely undermine Obama's message of change. He will not bring change to the public lands of the western United States." "Ken Salazar does not bring the change we need at Interior," said Nicole Rosmarino, the wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians. "Salazar will not take strong stances on behalf of science and environmental protection and is not up to the task of undoing the enormous damage the Bush administration has done to public lands, endangered species, and the credibility of the Department of the Interior over the last eight years." Others are upset that Arizona Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D), who had been a favorite among enviros, was not selected. "We've seen [Grijalva's] record -- that's very strong in regard to public lands and endangered species," Oregon Wild spokesperson Sean Stevens told NPR. "And I don't think we have the same sort of confidence in Ken Salazar. Hopefully we can grow to have that confidence." But Salazar also has his supporters. "Throughout his career, Sen. Salazar has campaigned on a pledge of support for 'our land, our water, our people.' With a perfect 100 percent score on the 2008 LCV Scorecard, he has lived up to that pledge," said League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski in a statement. "As a westerner, Sen. Salazar has hands-on experience with land and water issues, and will restore the Department of the Interior's role as the steward of America's public resources. We look forward to working with him to protect the health of America's land, water, and people in the coming years." Mike Matz, executive director of the Campaign for America's Wilderness, also applauded the pick....
...Jon Marvel, executive director of the Western Watersheds Project, called the appointment "a travesty" and said Salazar "will completely undermine Obama's message of change. He will not bring change to the public lands of the western United States." "Ken Salazar does not bring the change we need at Interior," said Nicole Rosmarino, the wildlife program director for WildEarth Guardians. "Salazar will not take strong stances on behalf of science and environmental protection and is not up to the task of undoing the enormous damage the Bush administration has done to public lands, endangered species, and the credibility of the Department of the Interior over the last eight years." Others are upset that Arizona Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D), who had been a favorite among enviros, was not selected. "We've seen [Grijalva's] record -- that's very strong in regard to public lands and endangered species," Oregon Wild spokesperson Sean Stevens told NPR. "And I don't think we have the same sort of confidence in Ken Salazar. Hopefully we can grow to have that confidence." But Salazar also has his supporters. "Throughout his career, Sen. Salazar has campaigned on a pledge of support for 'our land, our water, our people.' With a perfect 100 percent score on the 2008 LCV Scorecard, he has lived up to that pledge," said League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski in a statement. "As a westerner, Sen. Salazar has hands-on experience with land and water issues, and will restore the Department of the Interior's role as the steward of America's public resources. We look forward to working with him to protect the health of America's land, water, and people in the coming years." Mike Matz, executive director of the Campaign for America's Wilderness, also applauded the pick....
Praise and Criticism for Proposed Interior Secretary
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His efforts in the past as a state and federal official to thread the difficult political needle between the environment and energy brought him decidedly mixed reviews from environmental groups on Wednesday, but cautious praise from energy and mining interests. Environmental advocates offered mixed reviews of Mr. Salazar, 53, a first-term Democratic senator who served as head of Colorado’s natural resources department and the state’s attorney general. He was not the first choice of environmentalists, who openly pushed the appointment of Representative Raúl M. Grijalva, Democrat of Arizona, who has a strong record as a conservationist. Pam Kiely, program director at Environment Colorado, said Mr. Salazar had been a champion of wilderness protection and strong water quality laws and a skeptic on oil shale development, a subject of controversy in the Mountain West. Ms. Kiely said she was unsure of his views on drilling in millions of acres of national forests and roadless areas. Daniel R. Patterson, a former official of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management and now southwest regional director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, described Mr. Salazar as the most controversial of Mr. Obama’s cabinet appointees. “Salazar has a disturbingly weak conservation record, particularly on energy development, global warming, endangered wildlife and protecting scientific integrity,” said Mr. Patterson, who was elected last month to the Arizona House of Representatives from Tucson and supported Mr. Grijalva for the Interior Department job. “It’s no surprise oil and gas, mining, agribusiness and other polluting industries that have dominated Interior are supporting rancher Salazar — he’s their friend.” Even as Mr. Salazar navigates the department’s tricky political crosscurrents, he must also deal with calls to reverse dozens of decisions made in the Bush administration on endangered species and oil and gas leasing....
His efforts in the past as a state and federal official to thread the difficult political needle between the environment and energy brought him decidedly mixed reviews from environmental groups on Wednesday, but cautious praise from energy and mining interests. Environmental advocates offered mixed reviews of Mr. Salazar, 53, a first-term Democratic senator who served as head of Colorado’s natural resources department and the state’s attorney general. He was not the first choice of environmentalists, who openly pushed the appointment of Representative Raúl M. Grijalva, Democrat of Arizona, who has a strong record as a conservationist. Pam Kiely, program director at Environment Colorado, said Mr. Salazar had been a champion of wilderness protection and strong water quality laws and a skeptic on oil shale development, a subject of controversy in the Mountain West. Ms. Kiely said she was unsure of his views on drilling in millions of acres of national forests and roadless areas. Daniel R. Patterson, a former official of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management and now southwest regional director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, described Mr. Salazar as the most controversial of Mr. Obama’s cabinet appointees. “Salazar has a disturbingly weak conservation record, particularly on energy development, global warming, endangered wildlife and protecting scientific integrity,” said Mr. Patterson, who was elected last month to the Arizona House of Representatives from Tucson and supported Mr. Grijalva for the Interior Department job. “It’s no surprise oil and gas, mining, agribusiness and other polluting industries that have dominated Interior are supporting rancher Salazar — he’s their friend.” Even as Mr. Salazar navigates the department’s tricky political crosscurrents, he must also deal with calls to reverse dozens of decisions made in the Bush administration on endangered species and oil and gas leasing....
An honest broker at Interior
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Ken Salazar knows the landscape and the issues of the West, and the nation's land agencies will welcome a secretary with integrity. Here in the West, where the federal government owns three-quarters of the land, there's a lot riding on the experience, the beliefs and most important, the integrity, of the nation's Interior Secretary. Thus, it was heartening Wednesday to see President-elect Barack Obama standing with Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, introducing the man wearing a cowboy hat and bolo tie as the nation's next Interior Secretary. The hat and the bolo were nice touches, but what really matters is that this country soon will have an Interior Secretary who understands the political and social landscape of the West and has a long record as an honest broker of the many competing interests on public lands. There was some grumping Wednesday from conservation groups that had hoped Obama would nominate a full-on environmentalist to sweep into Interior and overhaul the department, which oversees the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. But Obama was wise to choose yet another political centrist for his Cabinet. As a Colorado senator, Salazar has a long, strong record of brokering deals between the warring interests on public lands. He's an endangered political species in the West, a leader trusted by mining groups, oil and gas advocates and environmental groups....
Ken Salazar knows the landscape and the issues of the West, and the nation's land agencies will welcome a secretary with integrity. Here in the West, where the federal government owns three-quarters of the land, there's a lot riding on the experience, the beliefs and most important, the integrity, of the nation's Interior Secretary. Thus, it was heartening Wednesday to see President-elect Barack Obama standing with Colorado Sen. Ken Salazar, introducing the man wearing a cowboy hat and bolo tie as the nation's next Interior Secretary. The hat and the bolo were nice touches, but what really matters is that this country soon will have an Interior Secretary who understands the political and social landscape of the West and has a long record as an honest broker of the many competing interests on public lands. There was some grumping Wednesday from conservation groups that had hoped Obama would nominate a full-on environmentalist to sweep into Interior and overhaul the department, which oversees the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. But Obama was wise to choose yet another political centrist for his Cabinet. As a Colorado senator, Salazar has a long, strong record of brokering deals between the warring interests on public lands. He's an endangered political species in the West, a leader trusted by mining groups, oil and gas advocates and environmental groups....
Senator's style: reaching out, getting it done
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You can't talk about Ken Salazar without talking about the off- white Stetson cowboy hat. You can't talk about the hat without talking about the San Luis Valley, one of the state's poorest regions. You can't talk about the valley without talking about five generations of the Salazar family ranching and farming before Colorado was a state. And so it goes. Native son makes good. Again. The news became official Wednesday: U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar is President-elect Barack Obama's pick for Interior secretary. Salazar - who as a teen decided against becoming a Catholic priest after attending a Franciscan seminary for two years, who ran a couple of bilingual radio stations and a Dairy Queen with his wife - broke into the political sphere in 1986. That's when Democratic Gov. Roy Romer hired the then 31-year-old water lawyer and rancher as his chief legal counsel. Four years later, Romer tapped Salazar as director of the Department of Natural Resources. Ask people about Salazar, 53, and a member of the Senate Finance Committee, and they often point to his ability to garner respect from farmers and oil company executives alike. "He listens to people," Romer said. "He is able to balance one side of an argument with the other and finally come up with a decision that is best."....
You can't talk about Ken Salazar without talking about the off- white Stetson cowboy hat. You can't talk about the hat without talking about the San Luis Valley, one of the state's poorest regions. You can't talk about the valley without talking about five generations of the Salazar family ranching and farming before Colorado was a state. And so it goes. Native son makes good. Again. The news became official Wednesday: U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar is President-elect Barack Obama's pick for Interior secretary. Salazar - who as a teen decided against becoming a Catholic priest after attending a Franciscan seminary for two years, who ran a couple of bilingual radio stations and a Dairy Queen with his wife - broke into the political sphere in 1986. That's when Democratic Gov. Roy Romer hired the then 31-year-old water lawyer and rancher as his chief legal counsel. Four years later, Romer tapped Salazar as director of the Department of Natural Resources. Ask people about Salazar, 53, and a member of the Senate Finance Committee, and they often point to his ability to garner respect from farmers and oil company executives alike. "He listens to people," Romer said. "He is able to balance one side of an argument with the other and finally come up with a decision that is best."....
Obama's choices know the West
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News that the president-elect intends to nominate Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., to head the Department of Interior is good for Westerners worried about the mindless rush to mine oil shale in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado and to open more public lands to drilling rigs and off-road vehicles. Obama's choice of Dr. Steven Chu, a Nobel laureate in physics, for energy secretary signals an abrupt change from Bush's industry-friendly mantra that America can somehow drill its way to energy independence. Chu's science background is made to order for putting the country on a new course for producing effective anti-pollution technology and quickly getting it on the market. Obama has done well by the West in his other Cabinet nominations --- New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson as commerce secretary and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security secretary. As governor of a border state, Napolitano has a proven grasp of immigration issues important to Utah and the rest of the country....
News that the president-elect intends to nominate Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., to head the Department of Interior is good for Westerners worried about the mindless rush to mine oil shale in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado and to open more public lands to drilling rigs and off-road vehicles. Obama's choice of Dr. Steven Chu, a Nobel laureate in physics, for energy secretary signals an abrupt change from Bush's industry-friendly mantra that America can somehow drill its way to energy independence. Chu's science background is made to order for putting the country on a new course for producing effective anti-pollution technology and quickly getting it on the market. Obama has done well by the West in his other Cabinet nominations --- New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson as commerce secretary and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security secretary. As governor of a border state, Napolitano has a proven grasp of immigration issues important to Utah and the rest of the country....
Hope burns for less political, more collaborative Forest Service
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So, what exactly does a former community organizer from Chicago know about grizzly bears and board feet, or salmon and hydropower? That's the question in the West, where towns surrounded by federal lands eagerly watch President-elect Barack Obama's picks for leadership posts in both the departments of Interior and Agriculture. The U.S. Forest Service, in particular, has proved susceptible to politics in recent decades, with each administration redefining the agency to some degree. Currently, a former timber industry lobbyist - Mark Rey - oversees the Forest Service as undersecretary of Agriculture. Obama has not announced his short list for that job, but among the names to have surfaced is Missoula's own former mayor, Dan Kemmis. “It seems as if the public-land pendulum swings with each new administration,” Kemmis said. “It's been a kind of ‘now-it's-our-turn' game. I believe we need to slow the pendulum, and find the bipartisan middle ground where we can really experiment with consensus and collaboration.” His is a welcome perspective, with analysts from all sides of the public-land debate anticipating less political and more professional agency oversight under Obama. The Forest Service has of late found itself laboring beneath a nearly impenetrable lattice of laws, a framework Kemmis argues has resulted in “a very proceduralized decisionmaking process.” It is a process built for - and some would say by - lawyers and judges, “and it absolutely invites people to line up on one side of the fence or the other,” Kemmis said....
So, what exactly does a former community organizer from Chicago know about grizzly bears and board feet, or salmon and hydropower? That's the question in the West, where towns surrounded by federal lands eagerly watch President-elect Barack Obama's picks for leadership posts in both the departments of Interior and Agriculture. The U.S. Forest Service, in particular, has proved susceptible to politics in recent decades, with each administration redefining the agency to some degree. Currently, a former timber industry lobbyist - Mark Rey - oversees the Forest Service as undersecretary of Agriculture. Obama has not announced his short list for that job, but among the names to have surfaced is Missoula's own former mayor, Dan Kemmis. “It seems as if the public-land pendulum swings with each new administration,” Kemmis said. “It's been a kind of ‘now-it's-our-turn' game. I believe we need to slow the pendulum, and find the bipartisan middle ground where we can really experiment with consensus and collaboration.” His is a welcome perspective, with analysts from all sides of the public-land debate anticipating less political and more professional agency oversight under Obama. The Forest Service has of late found itself laboring beneath a nearly impenetrable lattice of laws, a framework Kemmis argues has resulted in “a very proceduralized decisionmaking process.” It is a process built for - and some would say by - lawyers and judges, “and it absolutely invites people to line up on one side of the fence or the other,” Kemmis said....
Secretary Formally Designates Bureau of Land Management Lands as the National System of Public Lands
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Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has signed a Secretarial Order to officially designate the 258 million acres of lands managed for multiple-use by the Department’s Bureau of Land Management as the National System of Public Lands. “These lands constitute an invaluable recreational, cultural, economic, and environmental legacy for the nation,” Kempthorne said. “And yet, those who own these lands – the American people – remain largely unaware of their critical importance to our quality of life, their value to present and future generations, or even the purpose for which these lands are preserved in public ownership.” As the principal steward of the public lands, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is directed by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to manage the public lands for multiple-use, including recreation, conservation, wildlife habitat and economic activities, such as livestock grazing, energy and mineral production and the development of timber and forest products. “It’s time these great lands and resources, whose historical roots date back to the earliest days of our nation, are given their due by recognizing them officially,” BLM Director James Caswell said. “This official designation will ultimately make it easier for the public to identify these lands and more readily understand the multiple-use mission that Congress has given to the BLM.” While providing BLM-managed lands an official designation confers no change in land status, Caswell said that it will underscore several principles that are important to the stewardship of these lands. “Calling these lands the National System of Public Lands implies that all of our lands and resources are linked in some capacity,” Caswell said. “This linkage is at the heart of our landscape approach to land management.”....
Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has signed a Secretarial Order to officially designate the 258 million acres of lands managed for multiple-use by the Department’s Bureau of Land Management as the National System of Public Lands. “These lands constitute an invaluable recreational, cultural, economic, and environmental legacy for the nation,” Kempthorne said. “And yet, those who own these lands – the American people – remain largely unaware of their critical importance to our quality of life, their value to present and future generations, or even the purpose for which these lands are preserved in public ownership.” As the principal steward of the public lands, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is directed by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to manage the public lands for multiple-use, including recreation, conservation, wildlife habitat and economic activities, such as livestock grazing, energy and mineral production and the development of timber and forest products. “It’s time these great lands and resources, whose historical roots date back to the earliest days of our nation, are given their due by recognizing them officially,” BLM Director James Caswell said. “This official designation will ultimately make it easier for the public to identify these lands and more readily understand the multiple-use mission that Congress has given to the BLM.” While providing BLM-managed lands an official designation confers no change in land status, Caswell said that it will underscore several principles that are important to the stewardship of these lands. “Calling these lands the National System of Public Lands implies that all of our lands and resources are linked in some capacity,” Caswell said. “This linkage is at the heart of our landscape approach to land management.”....
Wolf impacts have hunters howling
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Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials in Northwest Montana are hearing from many hunters concerned about the rapid growth of packs and wolf numbers and an obvious decline in white-tailed deer populations. Regional Wildlife Manager Jim Williams said staffers at six game check stations heard plenty about wolves, particularly from hunters who were passing through the "no game" lanes. "One of the primary benefits of having check stations is we get to hear from hunters," Williams said. "And what we heard loud and clear is that people were seeing wolves, hearing them, seeing their tracks." When the five-week hunting season concluded at the end of November, Williams said he received at least 50 calls on wolves, "easily the most I've ever gotten in my career." The department's game wardens, biologists and front desk clerks have been getting similar calls. The reason, Williams said, is that the number of wolf packs has grown from 12 to 28 in Northwest Montana since 2005. And the number of packs throughout the broader Northwest Montana Recovery Area grew from 19 in 2005 to 36 in 2007....
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials in Northwest Montana are hearing from many hunters concerned about the rapid growth of packs and wolf numbers and an obvious decline in white-tailed deer populations. Regional Wildlife Manager Jim Williams said staffers at six game check stations heard plenty about wolves, particularly from hunters who were passing through the "no game" lanes. "One of the primary benefits of having check stations is we get to hear from hunters," Williams said. "And what we heard loud and clear is that people were seeing wolves, hearing them, seeing their tracks." When the five-week hunting season concluded at the end of November, Williams said he received at least 50 calls on wolves, "easily the most I've ever gotten in my career." The department's game wardens, biologists and front desk clerks have been getting similar calls. The reason, Williams said, is that the number of wolf packs has grown from 12 to 28 in Northwest Montana since 2005. And the number of packs throughout the broader Northwest Montana Recovery Area grew from 19 in 2005 to 36 in 2007....
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