Judge rejects Bush count of Columbia River salmon

Thursday, June 14, 2007  

The Bush administration can't count hatchery fish along with wild fish when making decisions about salmon on the Columbia River, a federal judge said on Wednesday.

Judge John C. Coughenour said the policy contradicts the Endangered Species Act. But since another judge came to a different conclusion, he said it might be up to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to resolve the issue.

The policy allows the National Marine Fisheries Service to remove species of salmon from "threatened" or "endangered" status because the hatchery fish boost the numbers.

Get the Story:
Judge: Bush policy errs on species protection (The Seattle Times 6/14)
Judge sides with wild salmon (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 6/13)
Only Wild Fish Matter in ‘Endangered’ Count, Judge Rules (The New York Times 6/14)
pwnyt

Court Decision:
Trout Unlimited v. NMFS (June 13, 2007)

Relevant Links:
Columbia Inter-Tribal Fish Commission - http://www.critfc.org

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