[Dialogue] Union of Concerned Scientists to Congress: Politics Trumps Science at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

[Harry Wainwright]

Union of Concerned Scientists
Citizens and Scientists for Environmental Solutions
www.ucsusa.org 



May 9, 2007

Union of Concerned Scientists to Congress: Politics Trumps Science at U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service

Related Links 

WASHINGTON (May 8, 2007)-The title of the May 9 House Resources Committee
hearing poses a question: "Endangered Species Act Implementation: Science or
Politics?" 

The unfortunate answer is all too often "politics," according to the Union
of Concerned Scientists (UCS).

The hearing comes on the heels of a scathing Department of Interior
Inspector General report that chastised former Deputy Assistant Secretary
Julie MacDonald for distorting U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
scientific documents to prevent the protection of several highly imperiled
species. Just last week, MacDonald
<http://ucsusa.org/news/press_release/interior-official-who-0025.html>
resigned her post.

Francesca Grifo, director of the UCS Scientific Integrity Program, is quick
to point out that MacDonald's case is just one of many. The misuse of
science at Interior has been reported on issues as diverse as mountaintop
removal mining, cattle grazing, and the protection of trumpeter swans.

"While we welcome Ms. MacDonald's resignation," said Grifo, "Interference at
Interior predates her arrival. Secretary Dirk Kempthorne must send a clear
message to all Interior political appointees that substituting opinions for
fact is unacceptable." 

Grifo will provide compelling evidence to the committee that political
interference in science has become epidemic-not only at FWS, but at agencies
throughout the federal government. In a 2005 survey of FWS scientists, 84
scientists reported having been directed to inappropriately exclude or alter
technical information from FWS scientific documents. Furthermore, 303
scientists, or two thirds of those who responded to the survey, knew of
cases where Interior Department political appointees had interfered with
scientific determinations. 

"This is not business as usual. When hundreds of federal scientists report
political interference in their work, our nation's biological diversity is
at risk," said Grifo. "Political meddling in endangered species science must
be driven to extinction."

Grifo also deplored the fact that political appointees are making Endangered
Species Act decisions "behind closed doors." She will urge Congress and the
Interior Department to take concrete steps to open the Endangered Species
Act decision making process to more scrutiny. "Increasing openness in the
decision making process would allow us to hold policymakers accountable for
their actions," she said. 

UCS also called for FWS to review all Bush administration Endangered Species
Act decisions to ensure that the science behind those decisions was not
altered or distorted. "At the very least, Secretary Kempthorne should
require an immediate reevaluation of decisions where political interference
has been documented," said Grifo. 

The hearing will start at 10 am in room 1324 of the Longworth House Office
Building and will be available live on the
<http://www.resourcecommittee.house.gov/> committee's Web site.

 
<http://www.ucsusa.org/scientific_integrity/interference/endangered_species_
act_hearing.html> Grifo's written testimony will be available May 9, at 10
am.

 

Contacts

Reporters: Join our
<http://www.ucsusa.org/news/press-notification-signup.html> notification
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For general media inquiries, please call our press office at 202-331-5420.

Press Contacts:

EMILY ROBINSON
Press Secretary
202-331-5427
 <mailto:erobinson at ucsusa.org> erobinson at ucsusa.org 

 

AARON HUERTAS
Assistant Press Secretary
202-331-5458
 <mailto:ahuertas at ucsusa.org> ahuertas at ucsusa.org

 

ELLIOTT NEGIN
Media Director
202-331-5439
 <mailto:enegin at ucsusa.org> enegin at ucsusa.org 

 

C Union of Concerned Scientists 

 

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