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:: 10.15.2003 ::
Bush Lets Mining Companies Dump on More Public Land
The Bush administration announced yet another environmental rollback on Friday, following a pattern of releasing such news right before a holiday weekend, presumably in hopes that it will slip past the public's notice. This time the beneficiaries are mining companies, which, thanks to a reinterpretation of the 1872 Mining Law, will now be able to use as much public land as they want to develop operations for mining gold, silver, and other minerals. The 131-year-old mining act, long criticized as outdated by the environmental community, already allows mining companies to extract minerals from public lands without paying any royalties to taxpayers. Steve D'Esposito of the Mineral Policy Center, an environmental group, called the Bush decision an "open invitation to dump massive quantities of toxic mining waste on unlimited amounts of our public lands. It puts clean water and community health at increased risk." [emphasis added] Story in the Seattle Times.
Another Great Idea The Bush administration wants to radically alter conservation policies to allow hunters, circuses, the pet industry, and leather importers to bring endangered animals into the U.S. from other nations -- dead or alive. Since its adoption in 1973, the Endangered Species Act has been interpreted as effectively prohibiting trade in endangered species between the U.S. and other countries, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service now argues that other nations should be permitted to sell a limited number of endangered animals to American buyers, so the funds generated can be used to support conservation efforts. Environmentalists aren't buying it. "As soon as you place a financial price on the head of wild animals, the incentive is to kill the animal or capture them," said Adam Roberts of the Animal Welfare Institute. "The minute people find out they can have an easier time killing, shipping, and profiting from wildlife, they will do so." Story at CNN.
Thanks to the Daily Grist.
:: Deb 6:37 PM :: permalink ::
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