OFF-ROAD NEWS

Battle Lines Drawn as Congress Considers Reforming Endangered Species Act

Lawmakers from both parties are gearing up for a heated debate this summer on reforming the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Enacted in 1973, the law currently provides protection to 1,800 species and their surrounding habitat. While House and Senate leaders largely agree on the current problems with the ESA, there are vast differences in finding legislative solutions. For years, property owners and off-roaders have argued that the law allows the government to quickly list a species and designate the surrounding area off limits.
   
There have been several hearings in both the Senate and House. Senate Wildlife Subcommittee Chairman Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) recently stated that the hearings were a starting point in the process and that he would not want to do anything to damage or weaken existing law. This is in sharp contrast to his counterpart in the House of Representatives, Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-CA). Chairman Pombo has allied with the Bush Administration, Western governors and several Western lawmakers, and is pushing for quick and drastic reforms to the ESA.
  
 To support his claims for ESA reform, Chairman Pombo recently released a SAN-supported report prepared by committee staff that highlights problems associated with the 30-year-old law. The 84-page document calls for a legislative update to existing law, in which it claims that only 10 species have been recovered and that 60% of listed species have an uncertain or declining status. Environmental groups have countered that species recovery is a long-term goal and that many of the species in question were placed on the list only in the past 15 years.

New Rule Allows States to Challenge Current "Roadless Area" Designations

The Bush Administration issued a final rule allowing states to petition the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to open areas previously closed under the Clinton Administration's so-called "roadless rule." The new rule establishes a process for considering state recommendations on which roadless areas should remain closed and which should be opened to logging, mining or other commercial ventures. The revision is consistent with the SAN's position that state government and local communities should participate in forest-management decisions. In its comments on the proposed rule, the SAN noted that the state petitioning process could be an opportunity to correct inaccurate roadless designations and include uninventoried routes well known to users and state officials but that do not appear on current USFS maps. Governors will have 18 months to submit their petitions. They may submit scientific data and updated mapping information to support their recommendations. The rule covers nearly 58.5 million acres of national forests and grasslands, mostly in Western states.