Interior Dept, US Fish & Wildlife Service Failing to Implement Manatee Settlement; August 3 Deadline Set

ARCHIVED 2002–2016: Originally distributed via the eWire press wire service. Preserved as historical record.

SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE |

Conservation & Wildlife

Corporate Responsibility

Science & Technology

Syndication Partners

**************************************************************************

E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE

**************************************************************************

For Immediate Release

Interior Dept, US Fish & Wildlife Service Failing to Implement Manatee Settlement; August 3 Deadline Set

Manatee Coalition Serves Notice To Interior Department, Norton: No More Delays, Protect Manatees Now

WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Jul. 11 -/E-Wire/-- A coalition of 18 environmental, animal welfare, and public interest groups served notice that it will brook no more delays when it comes to protecting Florida's endangered manatees.

In a letter to the Interior Department dated July 9, the coalition formally advised officials that it would agree to no new extensions to an already agreed-upon, court-ordered timetable for the establishment of manatee sanctuaries and refuges throughout peninsular Florida, part of a landmark legal settlement designed to protect the gentle marine mammals reached in January between the coalition and federal officials.

"To date we have granted the federal government four extensions. We have bent over backward to accommodate their requests for more time for study and coordination," said Eric Glitzenstein, attorney for the coalition. "But it has become apparent to us that the Bush Administration is using this delay in an effort to back out of its legal obligations to protect the manatee.

"We have decided that it is high time that the federal government honored its commitment. Since we can tolerate no more delays, new federal refuges and sanctuaries must be proposed by August 3, at the latest."

The coalition filed its lawsuit against the Interior Department, Army Corps of Engineers, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in January 2000, because the escalating number of manatees killed by boats, the lack of on-water protections, and the ongoing degradation of manatee habitat due to development threatened the manatee's continued survival. A companion federal suit charging the State of Florida with failure to protect manatees was filed at the same time; a settlement in the state suit was reached in May.

Under the terms of the settlement, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service committed to a firm and rapid schedule for the designation of a network of new manatee refuges and sanctuaries throughout Florida. According to the original agreement, the USFWS was obligated to propose the new refuges and sanctuaries for public comment by April 2, 2001, and for final adoption by September 28, 2001.

The process, however, has been anything but firm and rapid, says Helen Spivey, co-chair of the board of directors of the Save the Manatee Club, the lead plaintiff group. After holding initial public hearings around the state, the USFWS began applying for extensions. And now, with the settlement of the state suit, USFWS officials are backing away entirely from their legal obligations, she adds, claiming in a recent statement to the press that the situation facing the manatees isn't dire and citing the desire to give plenty of leeway to the state of Florida.

"We filed these lawsuits because the federal government and the state of Florida were not implementing and enforcing existing manatee protection laws resulting in an escalating number of manatees killed by watercraft each year," said Spivey. "But legal agreements are only good if all parties act in good faith."

"At a time when manatees continue to be killed and lacerated by boats in huge numbers - and when such death and injury continues to be the greatest immediate threat to the species' ability to survive and recover - we are dismayed by the government's contention that there is no "dire" situation that needs to be addressed," said Glitzenstein. "This is precisely the attitude that led us to file these lawsuits in the first place and which we thought we were ending when we reached our court-ordered settlement with the USFWS and the Corps of Engineers."

He adds that there are obvious ways in which the federal government could advance the conservation and recovery of the manatee without duplicating the areas covered in the state settlement, notably by using its authority to establish federal refuges and sanctuaries in areas not covered by the state settlement and as a remedy to shortfalls in the state protections.

Glitzenstein cited downtown Jacksonville from Redie Point to Fuller Wren Bridge and Barge Canal/Sykes Creek in Brevard County as areas of high manatee mortality or special concern that would benefit from the government's ability to use its powers to mandate federal refuges and sanctuaries. Glitzenstein specifically pointed to the Barge Canal/Sykes Creek location as one area that the USFWS should protect on an immediate, emergency basis - especially in light of the manatee killed there on June 27 in a watercraft collision - while new state protections in Brevard County are being held up by administrative challenges.

"The federal government has stated that it desires to coordinate its manatee recovery plans with the state of Florida, " said Glitzenstein. "But it has become abundantly clear to us that in the USFWS's lexicon "coordination" means capitulation. Given that reality, we cannot and will not consent to any additional extensions."

"We intend to use all means necessary to hold the USFWS and Corps of Engineers to their legal commitments under the agreement," said Glitzenstein.

Plaintiffs in the federal lawsuits include Save the Manatee Club, The Humane Society of the United States, Defenders of Wildlife, International Wildlife Coalition, U.S. Public Interest Research Group, Sierra Club, Animal Welfare Institute, International Fund for Animal Welfare, Citizens Association of Bonita Beach, Responsible Growth Management Coalition, Environmental Confederation of Southwest Florida, Florida Audubon Society, Florida Public Interest Research Group, Sanibel-Captiva Audubon Society, Audubon Society of Southwest Florida, Inc., Biscayne Bay Foundation, and the Pegasus Foundation. The Washington public interest law firm of Meyer & Glitzenstein serves as counsel on the suit against the federal agencies. Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund serves as legal counsel for the suit against the state of Florida.

The Humane Society of the United States

http://http:// www.hsus.org

**************************************************************************

To Transmit Your News Over E-Wire, visit http://www.ewire.com or

call 1-[REDACTED-PHONE]. E-Wire Is Broadcast To Millions Of Readers Worldwide

**************************************************************************