Was sind denn schon 10,000 nistende Paare ind diesem grossen Land?
Viele der Staaten wehren sich gegen diese Dummheit aus Washington
Napolitano joins tribes to advocate for eagles
Kate Nolan
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 28, 2007 12:00 AM
Gov. Janet Napolitano joined tribal leaders and conservationists Wednesday in urging the federal government to keep Arizona's bald eagles on the endangered-species list.
In a letter to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, Napolitano cited Arizona's unique geographic habitat and the cultural concerns of Arizona tribes, which are uniformly in favor of maintaining the endangered-species protection.
Kempthorne is expected today to announce delisting the nearly 11,000 breeding pairs of bald eagles as endangered in the lower 48 states.
In contrast, Arizona's smaller, lighter desert-nesting bald eagles number 43 pairs.
More than 20 Arizona Indian communities have written letters or passed resolutions opposing delisting of desert nesting bald eagles, and conservationists and eagle experts have said the Southwestern eagles remain threatened, although they have recovered elsewhere.
Napolitano's letter agrees with tribal charges that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is part of the Interior Department, did not observe legal government-to-government notification of tribes concerning the proposed delisting.
Napolitano requested that Kempthorne keep Arizona bald eagles on the endangered-species list until "adequate consultation with Arizona Tribal leaders can take place."
According to the governor's staff, she acted in response to complaints by leaders at a recent tribal summit and additional appeals from individual Indian communities, where 20 percent of Arizona's nearly 50 eagle-breeding areas are located. Not all the areas are inhabited by eagles.
Bald eagles play an important role in tribal identities and cultural traditions. Tribes fear a diminished eagle population could result in other species dominating and upsetting the balance of nature.
"The governor's concerns are on the process that Fish and Wildlife conducted. We don't feel adequate consultation has occurred," said Lori Faeth, the governor's senior policy adviser on natural resources.
"She wanted to tell them, 'You need to start listening to these people,' " Faeth said
Napolitano's letter cited federal regulations that demand consultation with tribes on important issues.
In May, Benjamin Tuggle, Southwest regional director for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, invited 13 Arizona tribes to a hearing after the tribes charged they hadn't been consulted on the issue. Tuggle told them he couldn't influence the decision in Washington on whether to delist the state's bald eagles.
Napolitano's letter was met with enthusiasm by tribal leaders.
"I'm really happy to hear what the governor has written. It is true the consultation with the tribes was performed very inadequately," said San Carlos Apache Tribal Chairman Wendsler Nosie Sr., who walked out of the meeting with Tuggle.
"If they had sat down with us in the beginning we would have reached some resolution earlier. But they put us in the community response process; we don't fit there," Nosie said.
Napolitano did not address scientific issues raised in a letter sent to her earlier this week by the Center for Biological Diversity, urging her to contact Kempthorne.
But Robin Silver, the conservation group's board chairman, praised Napolitano's response.
"We're grateful the governor has finally spoken out in defense of our desert nesting bald eagle and we hope Secretary Kempthorne doesn't make a historically tragic mistake and leave our bald eagle unprotected," said Silver, a Phoe- nix emergency-room physi- cian.
Tribal leader Nosie hopes federal authorities will listen to Napolitano.
"She represents Arizona," he said. "She represents the people."
Thema: Wieder genug Seeadler in den USA (Gelesen 626 mal)