Excerpts (the bold font is mine):
In mid-September, the FAA authorized the construction of a new, $331-million airport in a remote area approximately 30 miles from Panama City. The facility itself would destroy nearly 2,000 acres of wetlands and trigger development on thousands of surrounding acres of wetlands that provide important habitat for threatened and endangered species -- potentially including the ivory-billed woodpecker, a bird previously thought to be extinct. The wetlands also are vital for filtering contaminants, cycling nutrients, buffering storms and controlling flooding.Update: Another article is here. An excerpt:
...
Defenders of Wildlife is especially concerned about the impact a new airport would have on what might turn out to be home to the ivory-billed woodpecker.
"The fact that scientists have seen the ivory-billed woodpecker along the Choctawhatchee River is cause for celebration," said Jason Rylander, staff attorney at Defenders of Wildlife. "It's also cause for caution. Any proposal for major development in the area must consider the risk it would pose to the future of this bird -- as well as the other endangered and threatened wildlife that live there."
In September, scientists said they had seen the rare Ivory-billed woodpecker, a bird once thought extinct, in the nearby Choctawhatchee River basin — a claim that makes conservation all the more urgent, the lawsuit said.
Shepherdson said her organization has already asked the FAA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which still has permit approvals pending, to review the project because of the Ivory-billed sightings.
"It is a significant development," she said.
But Curtis said planners have researched the Ivory-billed's habitat and do not believe the bird is in the area.
"We don't think that is going to be an issue for us. It is something we have looked at quite extensively. Where it was seen was quite a distance from the airport site," he said.
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7 comments:
Shall we start keeping a list of states where unsubstantiated reports of IBWO are used to block activity or development? So far we have Arkansas and Florida.
These people are guilty of exactly what the forces against conservation accuse them of ... taking bad science and thin evidence and calling it proven fact. It's going to come back and bite other conservation causes in the ass one day.
"Any proposal for major development in the area must consider the risk it would pose to the future of this bird "
In Bizarro World, the future of a long-extinct bird is more important than the immediate undeniable impact a project will have on living plants and animals.
And don't forget, December marks the annual migration of the Florida skunk ape to the Choctawhatchee Swamp, where they forage for IBWO nestlings in their roost holes.
http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2006/oct/19/new_view_skunk_ape/?local_news
The majestic skunk ape desperately needs our concerns. Please consider donating to save these shy beasts of the woods.
Trying to salvage the reputation of the alma mater?
Jason Rylander the Staff Attorney for Defenders "holds a B.A. in Government from Cornell University".
A CLOset CLOne?
Finally, an enviro group with some guts and nuts to sue over the airport.
I have been waiting for this day for so long.
...sigh....
"We don't think that is going to be an issue for us. It is something we have looked at quite extensively. Where it was seen was quite a distance from the airport site," he said.
But one of the features of IBWOs is that they really really really HATE airports. That's why nobody has managed to photograph an IBWO near an aiport for more than half a century.
Why do they hate airports so much? Nobody knows for sure but it's likely because of all the tourists.
Another Amy Lester rant about primates...no surprise here...
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