Conservation Lawsuit Files to Stop Potomac River Projects

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TO ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

Conservation Lawsuit Files to Stop Potomac River Projects

WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Feb. 9 -/E-Wire/-- The National Wilderness Institute (NWI), a Washington-based conservation organization filed suit this week against five Federal departments and agencies, charging that they have failed to enforce the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in approving Potomac River projects.

The organization, which is represented by the law firm Bracewell & Patterson, charged that three endangered species-the bald eagle, the shortnose sturgeon and the dwarf wedge mussel--are threatened by construction of the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge. The complaint also says the same species are threatened by the dumping of tons of sediment into the Potomac River as part of the operation of the Washington Aqueduct.

NWI Director Rob Gordon said the suit was necessary because in past years the Endangered Species Act has been rigorously enforced when it suited the federal government's purpose yet was ignored a few miles from the White House.

"The Bush Administration has inherited the mess of the previous administration's unequal application of the ESA," Gordon said. "There has been considerable discussion as to whether this Administration's cabinet officers would enforce the nation's laws. Enforcement of the ESA in Washington, DC's backyard may be the first real test."

California Congressman and Western Caucus Chair George Radanovich said that NWI's action is long overdue.

"We in the west have seen project after project stopped in its tracks over the very statutes that are at issue in this case," Radanovich said. "It's no wonder the bureaucrats in Washington have ignored our pleas when they can seemingly ignore the law when it affects where they live."

Gordon dismissed government studies that were used to justify the Woodrow Wilson Bridge project.

"These reports were less a search for truth than a careful attempt to justify what the government wanted to do and circumvent enforcement of the Endangered Species Act," Gordon said.

The suit was filed as one complaint but covers two government actions that NWI says affects the same species. The Departments of Transportation, Interior (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) and Commerce (National Marine Fisheries Service) are listed as defendants in the suit. Also listed are the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers.

"This lawsuit is about the consistent application of the ESA," Gordon said. "We will show that that, in this case, the federal government has and is currently taking actions that directly threaten the existence of endangered species. It's clear that the same bureaucrats who zealously enforce this law when it affects people thousands of miles away turn a blind eye when it will help them and the politically powerful get to work a bit faster."

Contacts: Rob Gordon or Jim Streeter @ (703) 836-7404 Larry Hart (202) 547-1175

The Complaint is available on NWI's Website, www.nwi.org.

NWI is a non-profit conservation organization, which contributes to public understanding of environmental issues through educational programs.

National Wilderness Institute

Rob Gordon or Jim Streeter @ (703) 836-7404

Larry Hart (202) 547-1175

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