Julie MacDonald, who was Bush's appointee over the Fish and Wildlife Service, resigned in May after being accused making decisions that favored industry and were detrimental to endangered species. Eight of these cases are now being reviewed by the Department of the Interior. While over 200 decisions were made during MacDonald's five years with the agency, only those cases which would most likely be overturned.
A New York Times article says that MacDonald "browbeat department biologist and habitat specialists and overruled their recommendations to protect a variety of rare and threatened species." And they say she may have "inappropriately bent the process to fit her political agenda." I am not sure how you can "bend" scientific information about endangered and threatened species, but I'm glad that someone is taking notice now.
This is only a small part of the conflict between science and politics that is taking place in Washington, the article also pointed to issues of oil exploration, timber rights, global warming and public health.
Read the article: U.S. Agency May Reverse 8 Decision on Wildlife
No comments:
Post a Comment