Defense Department offered relief from species laws

The House Resources Committee voted Wednesday to give the Defense Department the relief it has been seeking from laws protecting endangered species and marine mammals.

By moving quickly on the National Security Readiness Act (H.R. 1835) the committee also asserted its jurisdiction over the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Defense Department included changes to these and other environmental laws in its fiscal 2004 authorization request. The House Armed Services' Readiness Subcommittee is scheduled to include relief from species protection when it marks up its portion of the DOD authorization bill (H.R. 1588) Friday. The full committee has scheduled its markup for next week.

"While members of this committee may disagree ... whether the military needs these changes, I believe that it is imperative that this committee act on these provisions or we become irrelevant in the process," said Resources Chairman Richard Pombo, R-Calif.

The mostly partisan vote Wednesday was 25-13, with four Democrats voting with the Republicans. On a voice vote, the panel also agreed to reauthorize the Sikes Act (H.R. 1497), which requires military facilities to prepare wildlife conservation plans.

Defense controls nearly 25 million acres that are homes for about 300 threatened and endangered species. As development destroys habitat elsewhere, the sprawling and often pristine military bases have become even more important for the survival of rare species. Defense officials contend that the encroachments by development and wildlife make it harder for conduct training and testing without coming into conflict with environmental laws.

One key provision the Resources panel included in the bill would exempt the military from designating areas as critical habitat for endangered species if a wildlife management plan is in place. Some critics say this guts the Endangered Species Act.

Democrats complained the bill is not needed and goes beyond what Defense requested. "Our troops are prepared, they are well trained, and I salute them. They demonstrated all the above in the recent Iraqi freedom campaign. They did that under current law," said the ranking Democrat, Nick Rahall of West Virginia.

The bill also affects the Marine Mammal Protection Act by changing the definition of harassment and by allowing the Secretary of Defense to get an exemption from the law for up to two years, with additional two-year extensions possible.

Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., questioned whether anything would prevent the military from setting off explosions that could kill all orcas in Washington. The DOD exemption does not require hearings or reviews of military actions.

The changes in harassment terms, as well as the striking of key phrases from the marine mammal act, are relevant to an ongoing lawsuit regarding the U.S. Navy's use of a low-frequency sonar system. In November 2002 a federal district judge issued a preliminary injunction limiting deployment of the sonar system, which the Navy says is a critical component of anti-submarine warfare

A number of changes were made to the bill following a five-hour hearing Tuesday. A provision that would have affected all federal departments and agencies was dropped. A third level of harassment regarding marine mammals was also dropped. Negotiations continued Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. Rahall said the changes improved the bill, but he was still unable to support it.

A divided committee also approved an amendment by Rep. Rick Renzi, R-Ariz., that would limit DOD responsibility for the impact of civilian water consumption on endangered species. Fort Huachuca in Arizona, for example, should not be responsible for reducing water use for people who don't live on the base, he said.

Several Democrats questioned the amendment's impact nationwide, and suggested rewriting it to only apply to Fort Huachuca. The vote on Renzi's amendment was 22-16, with two Democrats joining the Republicans.

An amendment was also approved for the Sikes Act reauthorization on a voice vote. The amendment would require that wildlife plans for military installations on Guam include steps to address the problem of invasive species. Snakes inadvertently brought to Guam in military cargo planes following World War II have devastated some of its native species.