DENVER—The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will reconsider its 2006 decision to keep the Gunnison sage grouse off the endangered species list, spokeswoman Diane Katzenberger said Tuesday.
The agency decided to review the decision in light of a December report that found improper political meddling in endangered species rulings, she said.
The report by the inspector general for the Interior Department found that former Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior Julie MacDonald and other Bush administration officials interfered with federal biologists’ decision-making for multiple species, including the Gunnison sage grouse.
MacDonald, a senior Bush political appointee, resigned in 2007. A listed phone number for her could not be found.
The sage grouse was declared a candidate for protection under the Endangered Species Act in 2000. The Fish and Wildlife Service decided against placing it on the list 2006, saying the bird’s numbers had remained stable or increased over the past several years.
Several environmental groups filed suit against the agency seeking a review of the decision.
“We decided to remand the determination (in order) to settle the lawsuit in light of the inspector general’s report,” Katzenberger said. “The Gunnison sage grouse was one of the species whose listing determination could have been potentially influenced by the Department of Interior.”
The Gunnison sage grouse, a chicken-like bird with spiky tail feathers, is found only in western Colorado and on the Colorado-Utah border. Its population has dwindled to about 4,000 due to habitat loss, said Erin Robertson, senior staff biologist for the Denver-based Center for Native Ecosystems, a plaintiff in the lawsuit against the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Robertson said making up for lost time will be challenging. Developers have destroyed many habitats that would have been protected if the bird was on the endangered species list, she said.
“Now hopefully they’ll get a speedy, unbiased review,” Robertson said.
The Fish and Wildlife Service filed notice of its pending review in federal court in Washington, D.C.
