http://americanstewards.us/news-publications/coordination-works
Winkelman NRCD Invokes the Data Quality Act
Coordination
Works | The environmental group, Wild Earth Guardians, sued the Service in 2008,
to have the tortoise listed under the Endangered Species Act. Currently,
the Regional office is reviewing the State office’s recommendation as to
whether or not the tortoise warrants protection. The environmental group is pushing for the listing of the species
because they want to end livestock grazing in Fortunately, Winkelman Chairman Bill Dunn had been studying the
coordination strategy for several years. When the environmentalist filed
their case, the Winkelman District initiated coordination with the
Service. Friday’s meeting was the third held to discuss the tortoise
listing. In the first meeting, Winkelman presented the Service with an 18-year
study led by one of their cooperators and past board members Walt Meyer, an
esteemed range scientist who initiated the study on his own largely because
there was so little known about the tortoise. The study surveyed a 23-square mile area where three different grazing
techniques were used. A strict protocol was used in gathering the
data. In the end, the study showed no impact to the species from
livestock grazing, and that a primary impact had occurred years prior as people
flocked to the desert to pick Jojoba berries. As they camped, they relied
on the tortoise for food. The Meyer study was the best scientific information available and
Winkelman District insisted that it be considered by the Service as they made
their recommendation. The District even prepared their own local conservation
plan built upon the evidence gathered in the Meyer study. The plan is
being initiated throughout the District to ensure the species continues to
thrive and the historic productive uses of the land continue. During the second meeting, Winkelman brought in scientists to discuss
and challenge the validity of the data provided by Wild Earth Guardians in
their petition to list. The conclusions the environmental group alleged
were that the population was in decline. Winkelman’s experts attempted to reproduce
the findings from the data cited, but found the information so incomplete that
they could not reproduce the claims made by the environmental group. In August of this year, the Service’s Arizona Field Office forwarded
their listing recommendation to the Regional office. Now that the
recommendation has been made, regardless of what that decision is, Winkelman
can seek to verify the credibility of the data the Service relied upon under
the Data Quality Act passed by Congress in 2001. This was the focus of last
Friday’s third coordination meeting. The Data Quality Act was passed in order to ensure that federal agencies
provide transparency to the process of developing data, reviewing it for
veracity and credibility, and using it accurately and in an unbiased fashion. This means that every report relied upon by the agency to make its
tortoise recommendation must ensure and maximize the “quality, objectivity,
utility, and integrity of the information disseminated.” In short, the
Service must ensure every piece of evidence it uses to make its recommendation
is verified to be accurate and true. The Data Quality Act guidelines create a path for local governments like
the Winkelman District to require disclosure and verification from the Service
as to the validity of the data relied upon. During the meeting, representatives from Winkelman asked the Service
about specific data used, whether they were able to reproduce the data, what
protocol was used to collect the data relied upon, why specific scientific
reports were not relied upon, and how the Meyer study compared to others
studies relied upon by the Service, among other questions. The purpose of the meeting was not to challenge the recommendation, but
rather to ensure the data used to base their decision on was of high quality
and the best scientific information available, as required under the Data
Quality Act and the Endangered Species Act. In the meeting, they were able to learn that the data relied upon by the
environmentalists in their petition to list had not been reproduced by the
agency in order to verify its accuracy, but that the agency had learned that
the protocol used in collecting the data was “diverse” and, in fact, had
changed half way through the process. In short, it was unreliable. On December 5th, the public will learn of the Secretary of
Interior’s decision. If their decision is to list, the Winkelman District
is in a position to challenge the listing. If the decision is to not
list, then they can expect the environmentalists to sue the Service, and
Winkelman can intervene in the case and ensure the best available science
prevails. Environmental groups like Wild Earth Guardians are beginning to find
their methods and practice of promoting unreliable science will be
challenged. Landowners learning to use the coordination process, like the
Winkelman District, can now ensure that common sense and sound science is used
when species are considered for listing. The science does not warrant a listing of the Sonoran Desert Tortoise
and thanks to the Winkelman District, the landowners in this case are no longer
outside observers. |