Planting Evidence? The discovery of a protected herb sparks accusations of sabotage

AP via The Winston-Salem Journal ^ | 07/19/2006 | Unknown

[oxcart]

SEBASTOPOL, Calif.

Did someone in this wine-country town illegally plant an endangered flower to sabotage a proposed housing development? That is the question at the center of a quarrel that some here have dubbed "Foamgate."

Bob Evans, a 72-year-old retired elementary-school principal, said he was walking with his dog last year when he came upon the tiny white flowers of Sebastopol meadowfoam poking from shallow pools of water in a grassy field.

The former bean farm happens to be the site chosen for the 20-acre Laguna Vista housing development.

Evans and other opponents seized on the discovery of meadowfoam, a federally protected species, in hopes that the developer would be required to scale back plans for 145 houses and apartments. "It was the bad luck of the developer that it popped up," Evans said.

But state wildlife officials investigated and concluded that the meadowfoam had been transplanted there. They ordered it dug up.

This year, the flowers returned, and so did the controversy. The dispute has held up final approval of the building project.

Sebastopol, a well-to-do community of about 8,000 people 50 miles north of San Francisco, is known for its environmentally conscious residents and restrictive growth policies.

When the meadowfoam appeared in April 2005 and after the Department of Fish and Game determined that it had been planted, it appeared to be the work of zealous conservationists.

"The people who planted it mistakenly believed that it would be the silver bullet that killed the project," said Scott Schellinger of Schellinger Brothers, the developer behind Laguna Vista.

Known as Limnanthes vinculans, the herb grows up to a foot tall and has small bowl-shape white flowers. They are found only in seasonal wetlands and in pools created by spring rains in this part of Sonoma County.

Threatened by agriculture and urban development, meadowfoam is listed as an endangered species by the state and federal governments. That makes it illegal to harm, remove or transplant it without permission.

Evans and other conservationists said that the $70 million development could damage the nearby Laguna de Santa Rosa, a 240-square-mile basin of wetlands that runs through Sebastopol.

Evans called Phil Northen, a biology professor at Sonoma State University, and the head of the local chapter of the California Native Plant Society. They visited the site and agreed that the plants were native.

But when a Fish and Game team visited the site at Schellinger's invitation a few weeks later, it reached the opposite conclusion.

Eric Larsen, the department's deputy regional manager, said that the flowers had never before been seen at the site, which is at a higher elevation than the typical meadowfoam habitat.

Fish and Game began an investigation into who planted the flowers but never identified any suspects. The department interviewed Evans and Northen, but Larsen said that the case went cold.

The city council tabled final approval of Laguna Vista on May 22. A mediator is overseeing talks between Schellinger Brothers and residents, in hopes of reaching a compromise.

[oxcart]

Great reply, and one hell of a tag line.

[Alouette]

How is this plant "endangered?" Looks to me like there are freaking fields full of it.

[A0ri]

The meadowfoam picture you posted is an industrial type for its seed oil. (I think.) Not the one mentioned in the article.(

[Alouette]

Is it the same species or not? If it is commercially grown for industrial use then it is not endangered. How do they know that this sample wasn't taken from a commercial farm?

[A0ri]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meadowfoam

There are various species. It would seem silly for the "oil-crop" type meadowfoam to be under protection (though not unlikely for enviro-wackos), as it seems to be easily and commercially reproduced, but the article says it is the type Sebastopol meadowfoam. The commercial type is Limnanthes alba, or the white meadowfoam.

Sebastopol meadowfoam (Limnanthes vinculans)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limnanthes_vinculans

[Lancey Howard]

Bob Evans, a 72-year-old retired elementary-school principal, said he was walking with his dog last year when he came upon the tiny white flowers of Sebastopol meadowfoam poking from shallow pools of water in a grassy field.

Evans and other opponents seized on the discovery of meadowfoam, a federally protected species, in hopes that the developer would be required to scale back plans for 145 houses and apartments.

__________________________________

Happens all the time - - you're out walking your dog and voila!, what should appear before your eyes but a flower that you recognize as being a rare, federally protected species.

And whaddayknow? - - you happen to make your amazing discovery on a parcel of land which is about to be developed. On top of all that, you happen to be an environmental activist, so naturally you immediately bring your discovery to the attention of the authorities in the hope that the development project can be killed.

"It was the bad luck of the developer that it popped up," Evans said.

Right.
Coincidences like this happen all the time.
Sure they do.

__________________________________

How on earth did this sick, lying scumbag Evans figure anybody would ever believe him? And why am I not surprised that this p.o.s. is a retired elementary-school principal?