USFWS Issues New Polar Bear Rule
Today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a new Rule regarding the conservation of the polar bear [here]. The USFWS listed the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act on May 15, 2008. The new Rule clarifies the conservation requirements.
The Rule applies standards of the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). in the USFWS press release Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne stated:
When I announced the protection of the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act earlier this year, I outlined the need to continue to allow activities permissible under the stricter standards imposed by the Marine Mammal Protection Act,” said Kempthorne. “This rule will protect polar bear populations, while ensuring the safety of communities living in close contact with the bears and allowing for continued environmentally sound development of our natural resources in the arctic region. …
Public safety controls and Native American harvest for a variety of uses are allowed:
The 4(d) special rule does not affect the continued subsistence harvest or the production and sale of polar bear handicrafts by Alaska Natives. Those activities are already exempted under the ESA and the MMPA. The rule allows the continued noncommercial export of Native handicrafts and cultural exchange of items made from polar bear parts that would otherwise require a permit as a result of the polar bear listing under the ESA.
Oil and gas production in polar bear “habitat” are allowed:
Onshore and offshore oil and gas exploration, development, and production activities in Alaska have been effectively governed for decades by the more stringent MMPA provisions. Under the 4(d) rule, the Department of the Interior will continue to primarily rely on the more stringent provisions of the MMPA to manage that activity. However, the overlay of provisions of the ESA, such as the consultation requirements of section 7 of the ESA will still apply.
Kempthorne also stated that listing of the polar bear is not intended to regulate or affect global warming:
Based on the extensive analysis associated with the polar bear listing rule it has been determined that activities and federal actions outside Alaska do not currently show a causal connection impacting individual polar bears. Therefore, no consultation is warranted at this time for any such activities and actions. This provision ensures that the ESA is not used inappropriately to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
This special rule will ensure that this icon of the Arctic retains important protections as we work with the State of Alaska and other nations within the polar bear’s range to develop and implement conservation measures. But as President Bush and I have said before, the ESA is not the right tool to set U.S. climate change policy,” said Kempthorne.
Our prediction: enviro lawsuits will come rolling in.
