Endangered Species Act hijacking is out of control

The customs, culture and heritage of hunting, trapping and even fishing in Idaho and other states are under attack by organizations that would have you believe they want to help the lynx and other predator species.

Those organizations have hijacked the Endangered Species Act for the purposes of increasing federal control over western states especially on their federal and other lands. Systematically generated lawsuits brought against federal agencies enhance their lucrative fundraising opportunities, especially in the urban parts of our country and beyond. This is our response to the "Help Lynx" article published recently in the Outdoors section of the Daily Bee, which we believe depicts a strategic plan in the form of a lawsuit that, in our view, is way over the top.

The Western Environmental Law Center, Center for Biological Diversity, Western Water Sheds Project, Friends of the Clearwater and Wild Earth Guardians have little concern for helping Idaho's lynx populations. All they care about and what they and many other extreme environmental organizations are pursuing is the total elimination of trapping, hunting, fishing and public use of federal and other lands and their multiple uses. Lawsuits exploiting the ESA's extreme interpretations are their favorite tools to bring about increased federal control over the West and to maintain staffing and salaries in their Washington, D.C., or local offices.

Over the past three years, three Canadian lynx have been incidentally "taken" by bobcat trappers in central and North Idaho. Two of the three were released unharmed and the other was shot by the trapper after he misidentified it as a bobcat. The trapper in this incident did the right thing. After realizing that he had harvested a lynx, and not a bobcat, he reported the incident to the appropriate authorities.

Predator trapping is a humane endeavor that is scientifically based and widely utilized by North American wildlife agencies. Foothold traps have been improved over the years to the point that their use is the preferred method of trapping, collaring and transplanting bears, lions and many other predator species. Thirty-five Canadian wolves were released unharmed into central Idaho in the 1990s after having been captured, using similar foothold traps.

Extreme environmental organizations have a long history of using the old shotgun trick of flock shooting with a reasonable probably of hitting something. The advantage of the flock shooting method means their lawsuits usually get funded in a large part by federal tax dollars which are paid to them for their attorneys' work by way of the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA). The EAJA and the ESA are flawed acts in need of congressional updating. We know some small business owners who would love to have the combination of free legal expenses and lucrative fundraising at their disposal.

The five extreme organizations mentioned above, along with the Defenders of Wildlife (DOW), Humane Society of the United States (HUSUS) and numerous others have filed thousands of similar lawsuits using the ESA and other laws related to our use of Idaho's natural resources. Those laws as presently written severely constrain and often prevent states from scientifically managing their natural resources for the benefit of their citizens.

Wolves in Idaho were recovered under ESA criteria in 2002 and should have been immediately delisted. It took a special act of Congress 10 years after their acknowledged recovery to trump the ESA and stop the lawsuits in Idaho and Montana. By then wolf numbers were out of control. Well-intended environmental laws that were adopted in the 1970s were, long ago, hijacked. Critical habitat for caribou that are not present in their intended habitat is a similar issue in the Selkirk Range that is still being litigated. The cost to North Idaho businesses as a result of restricted winter recreation attributed to the originally proposed 435,000 acres of critical caribou habitat has been estimated to be in the millions of dollars.

We say enough is enough. The combination of ESA and EAJA has created an environment which makes it highly profitable for extreme environmental organizations to continually bring lawsuits. Those assaults and their extreme demands are far from the original, reasonable intentions of those acts. These organizations transformed both acts into a financially profitable gold mine for themselves and a bad law/bad policy dilemma for everyday Idahoans. Should a reader doubt the enormity of the above described problem, go to the Boone and Crocket Club Home Page, enter EAJA in the search box, look for and click on "Lawsuits Impact Wildlife Fund, Tax Payer Dollars" for more details on the subject.

It is time for sportsmen, the general public and our federal and state legislators who value Idaho's way of life to come together and stop the out of control hijacking and exploitation of ESA and EAJA.

ED LINDAHL, Sagle, former President/Secretary of Concerned Sportsmen of Idaho

PETE THOMPSON, Ponderay, former Panhandle Fish and Game Commissioner

TONY McDERMOTT, Sagle, former Panhandle Fish and Game Commissioner