The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, following its usual pattern, recently missed two deadlines for deciding whether species should be protected under the Endangered Species Act, and enviros are taking the agency to task. In a move that could lead to a marked decline in logging in Northern California, the Environmental Protection Information Center filed suit this week over the status of the Southern torrent salamander, a rare amphibian that lives in the headwaters of California’s North Coast streams. EPIC’s Kevin Bundy said the agency’s delay may stem from politics because listing the salamander as endangered could restrict timber harvesting well beyond what is now required to protect salmon. Also, ten enviro groups announced that they will sue the USFWS to force a decision on the Canada lynx, which was once abundant in the forests of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York.
