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Parnell: state going on offensive on ESA
A State of Alaska petition to the federal government to remove the eastern population of Steller sea lions from the list of endangered species marks a move to a more pro-active state role in protecting state interests from the over-zealous application of the Endangered Species Act, Gov. Sean Parnell told a press conference on Sept. 2.
“Because the Endangered Species Act has increasingly been used as a roadblock to development, these actions have in the past caused the state to play defense,” Parnell said. “Well today the state goes on offense.”
With the eastern Steller sea lion population having recovered to a point where ESA protection is no longer required, Alaska, in coordination with similar petitions from the states of Washington and Oregon, is requesting the delisting, Parnell said.
Challenge also filed Alaska has also filed a strong challenge to the federal government’s draft biological opinion and associated environmental assessment for the western Steller sea lion population, to head off the federal government’s intention to close large areas of the western Aleutians to commercial fishing, Parnell said.
“These are the kind of actions we need to balance protection for species with protection our own citizens and our own economic way of life,” he said.
Asked what action the state might take in relation to the ESA listings of other wildlife populations such as the Cook Inlet beluga whale and the polar bear, Parnell said that the state is continuing to monitor the situation and that the Steller sea lion petition represents the first step of a new offensive play.
“Where there’s the science to back delisting and where the economic impact is clearly relevant to our citizens, we’re going to move to take action to delist,” Parnell said.
—Alan Bailey
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