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 TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) - More than three dozen scientists have signed a letter to protest a new Bush administration interpretation of the Endangered Species Act, saying it jeopardizes animals such as wolves and grizzly bears.
The proposed policy revision would enable the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect animals and plants only where they are battling for survival. The agency would not have to restore the animals in areas where they have died out, or protect them where they're in good shape.
The proposed changes were being sent this week to Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne and leaders of congressional committees that oversee the department. The changes were revealed last month in draft department documents released by environmentalists, who said the changes would amount to a gutting of the federal Endangered Species Act.
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