Colorado Lawmakers Want A Say
In Feds' Reintroduction Plans

DENVER —(AP)— Rebuffed four years ago when they tried to interfere with federal reintroduction of protected or "endangered" species, Colorado legislators last week voted to give themselves power over Division of Wildlife proposals to do the same.

The House Agriculture Committee voted, 9-4, to approve HB1229, sponsored by State Rep. Steve Johnson, R-Fort Collins.

Johnson said his bill doesn't go as far as one that was passed but eventually vetoed by Gov. Roy Romer. That bill attempted to stop federal relocation of such things as wolves, unless the Legislature game permission.

Romer held that the state had no such authority.

``My feeling is, before we're ready for reintroduction, the decision ought to be made by people within the area,'' Johnson said, and through their elected officials in the Legislature.

The bill says for any species not found, or no longer found in the state that has been put on the federal endangered species list, the General Assembly is authorized to specifically name the species and specify how it would be introduced before the plan is carried out.

The division now has management authority for 16 fish and animals now federally listed as threatened or endangered. Four are not found in Colorado. They include the bonytail chub, the black-footed ferret, the grizzly bear and the gray wolf.

The ferret and chub are on the reintroduction list in the next four years.

Bob Edwards, part of the wolf research support program, feared Colorado would make an all-out effort to stop programs, such as the wolf program, that was barred by the Idaho Legislature.

Such bills start pitting state government against the federal government, he said, ``and it's a no-win situation.''

What legislators and other state officials want may not necessarily be what state residents want, he said. ``There is a perception that the process does go against the will of the public, but there are public opinion polls that show a huge amount of public support.''

Edwards said he believed ``the people have no voice'' under Johnson's proposal.

``I'm not trying to stop the program'' said Johnson. ``I'm just saying we need the Legislature to participate in the decision.''

Sandra Eid of the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Sierra Club, opposed the bill, saying, ``If you proceed this way, be specific. When in the process do you want the Legislature to vote? I don't support this approach.''

Jo Evans of the Colorado Audubon Society said she didn't believe legislative intervention is the best way to deal with the issue.

``The real issue is the ecosystem,'' she said, and not the species that are involved in it.

Jim McKee of the Boulder County Nature Association, said he believes the best way to make a reintroduction decision is through a cooperative effort. He had no opposition to the Legislature's involvement, he said; he felt it should be a part of the program early on.

But it would probably be best if the bill is not enacted, he said.

Jim Lipscomb, a spokesman for the Division of Wildlife, said the bill could be viewed as showing ``a lack of confidence in the Fish and Wildlife Service,'' when in fact that federal agency has fully cooperated with the state in such programs.

Johnson's measure could upset the timing for reintroduction of the black-footed ferret and the boney-tailed chub in the state, he noted.

Endorsing the bill were the Colorado Cattlemen's Association and the Colorado Farm Bureau. Ray Christensen of the Farm Bureau said the Endangered Species Act ``really needs attention,'' and the spokesman for the cattlemen said he was concerned about ``wolves running around the countryside living off a key industry.''