Just in case this doesn’t get any play outside the Northwest: Bush switch on salmon protection stirs outcry: Proposal includes hatchery fish in count for listing
From the article: Sweeping changes in how salmon and their habitat are protected could result from a Bush administration proposal that would gauge the health of Northwest salmon by counting, for the first time, hundreds of millions of hatchery fish along with those born in the wild.
Critics immediately denounced the plan for ignoring scientific realities and potentially stripping away crucial protections now granted under the Endangered Species Act.
Carried out to its fullest, fishery experts said, it could result in some salmon stocks' being taken off the endangered species list after years and billions of dollars spent to restore dwindling populations.
Removing the fish from the list would weaken -- or even remove -- land-use restrictions designed to protect habitat, representing a boon to timber, mining, agriculture and construction interests that have been barred from working on the protected land.
This is just a flat-out disaster waiting to happen. If you had any question in your mind that Bush & Co. are bad news for anyone not filthy rich (and if so, you really haven’t been paying attention, have you?), this should remove it. Vote the bastards out of office before I have that aneurism I'm working up to.
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