Using the Christmas season for cover , the Interior Department on Thursday issued `` revised '' regulations designed to shield federal projects from review under the Endangered Species Act .
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christmas season cover interior department thursday issue `` revise regulation design shield federal project review endangered species act
Using the Christmas season for cover , the Interior Department on Thursday issued `` revised '' regulations designed to shield federal <m> projects </m> from review under the Endangered Species Act .
WHEN PLANNING TO widen Interstate 90 through Snoqualmie Pass , state transportation brass , federal agencies and greens wisely opted to cut down on road ( and people ) kill , and to give peace a chance .
The result will be a series of wildlife overpasses and underpasses , and efforts to make Gold Creek a healthy home to the endangered bull trout .
The unspoken trade-off : No lawsuits will hold up or raise costs on work that benefits the economy , and eases the drive to and from Eastern Washington .
Before leaving the political stage , the Bush administration aims to kiss off this kind of modest use of intelligence .
It is , said Rep. Jay Inslee , D-Wash. , the Bushies ' `` last sour note . ''
Using the Christmas season for cover , the Interior Department on Thursday issued `` revised '' regulations designed to shield federal <m> projects </m> from review under the Endangered Species Act .
`` I 've been waiting and holding my breath for one last awful thing ( Bush ) would do to be remembered by , and he has done it , '' said Rep. Jim McDermott , D-Wash .
The administration ignored comments from 300,000 citizens and adopted a policy that would allow federal agencies to ignore one of the nation 's basic environmental laws .
It would eliminate some requirements for independent review by scientists -- notably from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service -- as agencies plan projects involving timber sales , road construction and oil leases .
New rules would also prohibit federal agencies from assessing how a proposed project would add to global warming or jeopardize species habitat .
`` Nothing in this regulation relieves a federal agency of its responsibilities to ensure that species are not harmed , '' Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne told reporters .
Huh ?
`` If this rule had been implemented in years past , highway builders could have done what they wanted , without talking to the Fish and Wildlife Service .
We would probably not be seeing the improvements on I-90 , '' said Rick McGuire of the Alpine Lakes Protection Society .
`` The I-90 corridor has been a Berlin Wall between the northern Cascades and southern Cascades .
If you do n't make the means to cross a road like this , it 's bad for wildlife .
And it 's bad for people who hit wildlife . ''
Inslee noted the administration 's recent two-step maneuver in the Chukchi Sea off the north coast of Alaska .
The Fish and Wildlife Service formally listed the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act , due to the threat from global warming .
Ignoring the listing , the feds ' Minerals Management Service proceeded to sell oil leases where the bears live .
The Bush administration finalized a retroactive justification on Thursday .
It created a `` special rule '' for polar bears , allowing oil and gas drilling , as long as oil companies obey the Marine Mammal Protection Act .
`` Polar bears do n't need a listing .
They need ice , '' said Inslee .
Inslee noted the role of the late Sen. Henry Jackson , D-Wash. , who backed oil development in the Arctic and helped write the Endangered Species Act .
`` Senator Jackson and others had the foresight and intelligence to say : Let us allow the expertise of government scientists to be tapped before decisions are made , '' Inslee added .
`` That 's what the consultation process does .
It has been used to good effect in our state . ''
Critics of the Endangered Species Act often substitute anecdote for fact .
They 've argued that consultation with government scientists means holdups and more work .
In a filing with the Interior Department , however , the Natural Resources Defense Council noted that no evidence of delay and cost was produced to support relaxing the law .
Quite the contrary .
The new policy nixes informal consultation between agencies intended to determine whether a project needs more formal and detailed environmental review .
The likely result will be `` erroneous findings '' by agencies , argued the NRDC .
What 's the consequence ?
Project opponents will get grounds to sue .
`` We will look at the final ( rule ) language when it is published tomorrow , but I think we will see them in court , '' said Andrew Welzler of the NRDC .
Putting teeth back in the Endangered Species Act , and reversing the new rule , presents a tricky , time-consuming task for the Obama administration .
The makeup of Obama 's environmental team has surfaced in recent days .
It is urban , and largely Eastern .
The incoming Environmental Protection Agency boss , Lisa Jackson , has worked as New Jersey 's environmental commissioner .
Soon-to-be senior White House aide Carol Browner , an Al Gore protagonist , is from Florida .
Obama brass would be well advised to turn for help to the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West .
Our government leaders have dealt with tricky issues involving Endangered Species Act listings of Puget Sound salmon runs and orcas .
East Coast environmentalists , in high government posts , proved tone-deaf and clumsy when dealing with endangered species issues in the Clinton and Carter administrations .
What 's needed now is political savvy , plus what George W. Bush , in his 2000 campaign , described as `` sound science . ''
P-I columnist Joel Connelly can be reached at 206-448-8160 or joelconnelly @ seattlepi.com .
Follow politics on the P-I 's blog at blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics .