Posted on 07/20/2006 12:57:20 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - A federal judge halted a $320 million irrigation project Thursday for fear it could disturb the habitat of a woodpecker that may or may not be extinct.
The dispute involves the ivory-billed woodpecker. The last confirmed sighting of the bird in North America was in 1944, and scientists had thought the species was extinct until 2004, when a kayaker claimed to have spotted one in the area. But scientists have been unable to confirm the sighting.
Still, U.S. District Judge William R. Wilson said that for purposes of the lawsuit brought by environmental groups, he had to assume the woodpecker exists in the area. And he ruled that federal agencies may have violated the Endangered Species Act by not studying the risks fully.
"When an endangered species is allegedly jeopardized, the balance of hardships and public interest tips in favor of the protected species. Here there is evidence" that the ivory-billed woodpecker may be jeopardized, he said.
The National Wildlife Federation and the Arkansas Wildlife Federation had sued the Army Corps of Engineers, arguing that the project to build a pumping station that would draw water from the White River would kill trees that house the birds and that noise from the station would cause the woodpeckers stress.
The judge said the Corps and the Interior Department must conduct further studies before proceeding.
The Corps began building the Grand Prairie Irrigation Project last year, about 14 miles from where the bird was supposedly spotted. It suspended work in mid-March to keep from exceeding its budget and is scheduled to resume construction in October with the start of a new fiscal year.
About $80 million has been spent so far. The project is scheduled to begin delivering water to farmers in 2010 or 2011.
The kayaker's claim to have seen an ivory-billed woodpecker in the woods near the White River caused a sensation in scientific circles. But more than 100 volunteers and researchers who spent weeks last winter trying to find conclusive evidence of the bird's existence came back empty-handed.
The Corps had conducted a study showing the project would not significantly harm the woodpecker's habitat, but environmental groups said the study was too narrow.
Under the judge's order, the agencies must evaluate any ivory-bill nests and forage sites within 2 1/2 miles of the construction project.
The pumping station would draw 158 billion gallons from the White River per year. Authorities said it is needed because the main aquifer beneath eastern Arkansas's soybean, cotton and rice fields is running out of water and could run out by 2015, causing economic hardship.
A Justice Department lawyer said this year that a one-month delay would cost the Corps as much as $264,000, and a six-month wait $3 million.
Wilson, William Roy Jr.
Born 1939 in Little Rock, AR
http://air.fjc.gov/servlet/tGetInfo?jid=2612
Federal Judicial Service:
Judge, U. S. District Court, Eastern District of Arkansas
Nominated by William J. Clinton on August 6, 1993, to a seat vacated by G. Thomas Eisele; Confirmed by the Senate on September 30, 1993, and received commission on October 1, 1993.
Education:
Hendrix College, B.A., 1962
Vanderbilt University Law School, J.D., 1965
Professional Career:
Private practice, Texarkana, Arkansas, 1965-1966
Deputy prosecuting attorney, Miller County, Arkansas, 1965-1966
U.S. Navy Lieutenant J.G., 1966-1969
Private practice, Little Rock, Arkansas, 1969-1993
Race or Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
That is really cool!
I have a pair of downy woodpeckers in my yard but I have not seen them since the winter.
LOL, didn't take you long did it.
Here's a link to a discussion about the video clip and it includes a link to the video.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/04/0428_050428_extinctwoodpecker.html
Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.........To and enviro-nazi.......
There is much dispute about that video some say it's clearly an Ivory others say it's just an artifact of a camera angle and is just the Pilated. I hope it is an Ivory but no subsequent evidence has turned up to my knowledge. My question is does the ESA even list the Ivory for protection??? At the time it was passed the bird should have been considered extinct not endangered. Otherwise the above posts about passenger pigeons etc. would have some real world truth and not just be humorous.
For two year, I lived in a second story apartment that faced a cornfield, and a huge tree was right next to the balcony.
I set myself up an entire feeding station on the balcony.
The first winter, I had a female pileated coming to the suet. Like clockwork, every morning I could hear her 'cuk-cuk' as she flew towards the tree. So I could stop getting ready and go watch her feed, for as long as 4 minutes sometimes. By the end of spring, her mate and at least on offspring were coming. Once I walked out onto the balcony just as a male was flying off the roof onto the suet. He caught a glimpse of me and jumped to the other balcony. I froze and we just stared at each other. He was not 10 feet from me.
We've got 4 or 5 different species that come around the yard. Pileated woodpeckers are big (about 18 inches) but we've got red headed, flickers, yellow bellied sapsuckers, Hairy etc.
Where are we going ... and what's this handbasket we're in ?
So, Madeline, if you spotted one of these birds on your land, would you tell anyone? Why or why not?
This country was not built on, nor does it operate on assumptions.
"Problem solved."
There seem to be a lot of peckers among the politicos of Arkansas.
That is my question too.
I wonder if water conservation or other ideas were implemented before the government spent taxpayer money on an irrigation project ?
Who knows what that kayaker saw?
I think most reports of ivory-bills over the years are pileated - however it should be pretty obvious from a video of a flying bird. The big obvious differences don't show up in the head-shot...
http://www.audubon.org/bird/ivory/differences.php
We live on six acres of wooded land right next to Hoosier National Forest, so there is plenty of preserved natural habitat. But it's not the right habitat for the Ivory Bill, so we aren't going to find any here. And to answer your question, I probably wouldn't tell because if they were living in the Hoosier National Forest, their habitat is already preserved.
In flight from behind, the Ivorybill has large white wing patches, and that is what is apparent in the video. The Pilaeated does not.
I agree that they look alike, but if you are just an avid bird watcher, you instinctively know what you need to be looking at right off the bat.
And to be honest, those differences to my eye are VERY noticeable. And I'm no scientist. Bird watching is strictly a hobby.
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