On February 24, 2004, the Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals effectively
invalidated, once again, the listing
of the Oregon Coast coho salmon as a
"threatened species" under the
Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Rule Text In September 2001, in
Alsea Valley Alliance v. Evans,
Judge Hogan ruled that the National
Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
acted illegally in protecting fish
spawning in the wild, but not
hatchery fish, which are genetically
identical. The NMFS' counting of
only naturally spawned salmon while
totally disregarding hatchery
spawned salmon kept the fish count
artificially low, justifying
otherwise needless ESA protections
and locking up land use.
The Court's order
invalidating and setting aside the
coho listing had been postponed
during the appeal and finally
reinstated on February 24, 2004.
Consequently, the Oregon Coast coho
listing no longer exists and may not
be enforced. This decision stands to
have huge implications for land
stewards and natural resource
providers such as farmers, ranchers,
and timber harvesters as well as
local governments and citizens
struggling with infrastructure
development of schools, hospitals,
and highways.
Victory for "good science and
common sense"
The
Pacific Legal Foundation, which
represented the Alsea Valley
Alliance, claimed the Court's
decision as a victory for "good
science and common sense." Many
biologists, including even a chief
of the NMFS hatcheries and inland
fisheries branch, have agreed that
there probably aren't any truly
"wild" salmon left in the lower 48
states and that because of nearly 50
years of natural cohabitation, the
hatchery-spawned salmon and the
"wild" salmon are virtually
indistinguishable. "With the Ninth
Circuit's dismissal of this appeal,
the 'sky is falling' rhetoric of
hardcore environmental activists has
been debunked and their true agenda
exposed. This attempt to control
private land use in the name of
species protection has been
successfully shut down," The PLF
attorney Russ Brooks said.
The National Grange
has supported a "true
scientific" basis for
establishment of buffer/setback
restrictions along all bodies of
water and it calls on NMFS to
promptly complete its review of the
hatchery policy and salmon and
steelhead listings, consistent with
the district court and Ninth Circuit
decisions!
If you have any question or
comments please contact
Legislative Research Analyst
Chil-Sook Hwant by email:
chwang@nationalgrange.org 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.
National Grange of the Order of
Patrons of Husbandry
1616 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004
1-888-4GRANGE
