SF 344 is a regulatory reform bill. It has a lot of bad provisions, but one
of the worst provisions relates to state endangered and threatened species
(E&T).
An original provision in the bill regarding E&T species was removed.
**However, Senator Wieck from NW Iowa offered an amendment to address the
E&T issue again. His amendment (3121) to SF 344 means that if Iowa DOT does
a highway project using only state money, the state endangered/threatened
species list would be used. But if the Iowa DOT uses federal money for a
project, the federal E&Tspecies list would be used.
*Since nearly every road project in Iowa uses some federal money, virtually
every road project would be impacted by this bill.
Conservation and environmental groups strongly oppose this section of SF344.
The bill is currently eligible for debate in the House (it has already
passed the Senate 26-24.) I urge you to communicate your concerns to your
State Representative to either vote "against the bill SF 344", or to urge
your Representative to "support the removal of the E&T species portion of
this bill". To contact your Representative by e-mail, type his or her first
name and last name, separated by a dot "."@legis.state.ia.us An example
would be [log in to unmask] The House Switch Board is (515)
281-3221
In addition, please contact the Governor <[log in to unmask]> and
urge his veto of the bill. It would indeed be a dark day in Iowa and a step
backward if amendment 3121 remains in this bill. This is an assault on
Iowa's
natural resources and our heritage.
Negotiations are taking place between the Republicans, the Democrats and the
Governor. It is possible the bad provisions of SF 344 could be attached to
the Iowa Values Fund. We cannot assume that anyone besides us is looking
out for endangered and threatened species so I urge you to take action as
soon as possible.
Background Information:
The state endangered species list is composed by DNR staff in consultation
with experts in various branches of zoology and botany, by studying
available scientific information and survey data, and by responding to
trends in populations of plant and animal species. Any proposed list must
be approved by the Natural Resource Commission and the Rules Review
Committee through the normal rule-making process.
No extinct species appear on the state list of threatened and endangered
species (contrary to comments made during discussion of this issue in the
Senate).
No major highway construction projects have been blocked by state endangered
species issues. Projects have been modified in design to avoid destruction
of threatened and endangered species, but projects have never been
completely stopped. The issues have been resolved in ways that allowed the
projects to proceed.
There are 238 species on the state threatened and endangered species list,
which may seem at first impression to be a "large" number but consider these
points:
1) there are over 5000 species of plants and animals in the state, so
fewer than 5% appear on the list,
2) there are few occurrences of any individual listed species in the state
(always less than 20, usually less than 10, and in some cases only 1 known
location.) These species occur on only a modest number of sites in the
state, and
3) with only about 5% of the state left in a natural condition, many
species have in fact become rare. (We are widely considered to be the most
altered state in the nation).
4) no major state highway projects have been blocked by the state list,
rather alternative routes were considered or other changes were made. Many
highway projects do not even wind up having state listed species within
their routes or alternative routes.
5) no extinct species are on the list (this statement was made in the state
senate).
6) state highway projects can have a major, permanent impact on state
listed species, private homes, farm land, historic sites, archaeological
sites, wetlands, public land, etc. Careful planning, including considering
alternatives before a final route is chosen, can help reduce those impacts.
7) all Iowa citizens who drive in the state have to pay federal and state
gas taxes which pay for highway projects. Citizens have a right to have a
voice in deciding what factors should be considered when designing new
highways or expanding existing highways. The amendment 3121 could eliminate
the right of citizens to have a voice.
8) the state threatened and endangered species list changes over time.
Species are removed from the list if they become significantly more common
in the state, while species that appear to be declining may be added to the
list.
Jane Clark
Chair, Iowa Chapter
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