A POLICY OF "MALEDICTORY NEGLECT": An op-ed in the Albuquerque Journal 8/26 by the Center for Biological Diversity's Michael Robinson documents the sad history of the jaguar in New Mexico. Decades of persecution officially ended with the 1997 listing of the jaguar as an endangered species. In New Mexico, however, the species recovery was intrusted to the Jaguar Conservation Team, a group of "federal, state and local agencies dominated by the livestock industry" whose "expressed goal" was "denying the big cat protection." Despite repeated credible sightings, the JCT continues to limit the recovery area to a small fraction of the jaguar's historic range, permits predator poisoning in the cat's habitat and has even "authorized federal agents to kill a jaguar by ‘accident'."

LOGGING BY ANY OTHER NAME WOULD STILL SMELL AS ...: The wildfires that have raged in the West this summer have prompted a number of plans to reduce the threat to property by clearing small trees and brush from forests says ENS 8/24. Among these are a rider attached to spending bill and a proposal by the administration for a "massive ‘thinning' project." The timber industry, however, is saying that they need to cut larger trees to make such "forest restoration" projects economically viable. On the other hand, environmentalists maintain that logging and accompanying fire suppression are part of the problem not the solution.

ATLANTIC FARMED SALMON FEED IN PACIFIC: Researchers confirmed that Atlantic salmon escaped from British Columbia fish farms "can learn to feed in the wild" says the Anchorage Daily News /Knight Ridder/Tribune 8/28. In 2 "incidents" just this month, 36,462 Atlantic salmon escaped from one B.C. fish farm spurring worries that the fish will spread disease, breed and compete for food with native wild Pacific salmon.

SF AIRPORT EXPANSION LINKED TO WETLANDS RESTORATION: The CA state Senate has advanced a controversial and complicated legislative proposal that would allow the San Francisco airport to expand its runway into 1,400 acres of bay marsh in exchange for helping to restore 19,000 acres of "former marshland" that had been turned into a salt works says the San Jose Mercury News 8/23. Proponents say the deal could "transform the whole South Bay" and allow delisting of the SF garter snake, CA clapper rail, CA least tern and salt marsh harvest mouse, but environmentalists don't want the two projects linked without knowing the full impacts of the airport expansion.

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING: In India, "a local Robin Hood" called Dadua or "big brother" has gained "strong local support" by taking on illegal loggers and poachers says Reuters 8/29. He has reportedly "gunned down a poacher" and "created so much terror" among the "forest mafia," and corrupt officials "that illicit felling and poaching have virtually come to a halt in the region."