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On June 12, the 10th Circuit Court held that the federal government has a responsibility
to preserve the Middle Rio Grande ecosystem by releasing enough water to keep
the endangered silvery minnow alive, even though the federal government does not
own the water in question, but holds the water "in trust" and delivers the water
to farmers, ranchers and the city of Albequerque.
Read
the court's decision. (pdf 354k) - Please
send an email or post card to New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson to urge him
to appeal this decision on behalf of the State of New Mexico and the city of Albequerque
to the full 10th Circuit of Appeals federal court in order to overturn this decision.
The court
battle over the silvery minnow is one of the hottest water battles in the West.
U.S. District Judge James Parker ruled last year that federal agencies should
consider using water from the reservoir for the fish. This decision was appealed
to the 10th Circuit Court of appeals in Denver, CO. Deciding
the Endangered Species Act takes precedence over federal water contracts, the
10th Circuit Court of Appeals by a 2-1 vote upheld the District court ruling that
the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) can take San Juan-Chama Project water from
cities and others who contract for it, and Middle Rio Grande Project water from
farmers. The court broadly construed the discretionary authority of USBR to reduce
water deliveries in favor of endangered species protections. It also affirmed
that the strict Endangered Species Act (ESA)'s requirement that federal agencies
conserve species and avoid jeopardy gives federal agencies the ability to modify
existing government contracts absent an unmistakable waiver of sovereign acts
by the federal government. Critics
of the decision by the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals decried it as a threat
to all cities and farmers served by federal water projects. In New Mexico, state
and city officials have quickly geared up for a fight. Gov. Bill Richardson pledged
to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. So have Albuquerque officials, who
say the ruling could cost the city more than 48,000 acre-feet of water a year.
An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons, or enough water to meet a typical family's
needs for a year. Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez said it takes "water from the
mouths of this city's children" and puts the city's future water supply in jeopardy.
U.S. Senator Pete Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson said they will seek legislative
changes to block the appeals court ruling. Domenici said he would try to amend
the Endangered Species Act "in a way that would change the law so (the ruling)
would not apply." His legislation would claim that New Mexico's federal water
contracts supercede the federal Endangered Species Act. As
a member organization of the National Endangered Species Act Reform Coalition,
the National Grange has supported comprehensive reform of ESA for both farmers
and environment. The
National Grange's position on this issue is expressed in the policy book:
- The National Grange encourages
Congress to amend the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to restore proper perspective
by requiring public hearings and economic impact statements on the impacts to
the affected areas before a species may be listed. We support changes to the ESA
to require that only a pure biological and numerical definition of an endangered
species be used without being based on sub species, distinct populations, or hybridization.
We believe that only those species actually threatened with extinction should
be listed in the ESA, taking into consideration total populations, available habitats,
and recovery areas on the North American continent. We further support a review
of the Endangered Species Act with the following guidelines: focus on keystone
species (organisms critical to the stable functions of entire habitats and ecosystems),
not minor or reduced species; rely on public lands for preservation; encourage
voluntary protection by individuals and corporations; curtail taking of private
lands for ESA; balance human costs with ecological benefits; compensation for
private property owners for loss of usage of their property due to the Endangered
Species Act. The National Grange insists on the strictest possible interpretation
of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) on public and private development projects
in cities and urban areas. The National Grange supports legislation legally allowing
people to defend themselves from an attack by any animal listed as an endangered
species without concern of retribution from government authorities. The National
Grange reaffirms its call for complete and comprehensive reform of the Endangered
Species Act (ESA) so that it shall no longer take total precedence over property
rights, energy development, and fire suppression.
- The
National Grange opposes any reauthorization of the Clean Water Act that includes
any provision to require that a state designate any water that supports a population
of a threatened or endangered species as an Outstanding Resource Water.
-
The National Grange will actively work to reverse the actions of the Ninth Circuit
Court and permanently restore the flow of life-giving and life-sustaining water
from Klamath Lake to the farmers and farm communities served by the irrigation
systems. We urge that Congress investigate the closure of irrigation facilities
for the benefit of a suckerfish in the Klamath Falls Basin and determine the consequences
of the loss of irrigation water in the Klamath Falls Basin in Oregon and California.
For
Your Reference: Action
Alert 06/05/03 - Defense Authorization Bill Including ESA Reform Language is Now
Ready for the Conference Committee! Letter
to Representative Greg Walden to show support for Sound Science for Endangered
Species Planning Act of 2003 (H.R. 1662) on 04/15/03 Action
Alert 04/10/03 - Support Sound Science for Endangered Species Act Planning Act
of 2003! Action
Alert 08/07/02 - H.R. 4840, "Sound Science for Endangered Species Act Planning
Act of 2002" Should Be Passed in the House Floor in this Congress Action
Alert 03/20/02 - Endangered Species Act Reform Action Alert! Action
Plan --- Please send an email or post card to New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson
to urge him to appeal Silvery Minnow decision on behalf of the State of New Mexico
and the city of Albequerque to the full 10th Circuit of Appeals federal court
in order to overturn this decision. Governor's
Office Mailing Address:
Office of the Governor
State Capitol
Room 400
Santa Fe, NM 87501
Telephone: (505) 476-2200
e-mail: gov@gov.state.nm.us
Sample
Letter:
Dear
Governor Richardson: I
am writing to you to urge you to appeal Silvery Minnow court decision on behalf
of the State of New Mexico and the city of Albequerque to the full 10th Circuit
of Appeals federal court in order to overturn the decision. The court decision
is a threat to all cities and farmers served by federal water projects. Overturning
this decision will help promote reform of the Endangered Species Act, protect
private property rights, protect state water laws, and protect the validity of
contracts entered into by the federal government. Thank
you for your hard work on overturning the Silvery Minnow court decision. Sincerely,
(Name)_______________________
(Grange/Grange
name and number) ________ | Click
Here to Download the Post Card to Gov. Richardson (.pdf)
Please
use post card sheet with product number 8387 for the best view. If
you have any questions or comments please contact Legislative Research Analyst
Chil-Sook Hwang by fax: 202-347-1091
or by phone: 1-888-4GRANGE, ext 109. Thank you for your grassroots participation
in the National Grange Legislative program. Want
to Subscribe To  ? For
all subscription and circulation inquiries, Contact: Jonathan
Hill. | 
