FEDERAL JUDGE ADVISED TO OK CONDOR RELEASE.Byline: Carey Hamilton Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. Further delays in the reintroduction of the California condor to the red rock canyons of northern Arizona Northern Arizona is dominated by the Colorado Plateau, the southern border of which in Arizona is called the Mogollon Rim. In the West lies the Grand Canyon, which was cut by the flow of the Colorado River while the land slowly rose around it. and southern Utah could sabotage years of recovery efforts, a federal wildlife official said. Robert Mesta, the condor program coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, urged a federal judge in a written statement to reject a motion by San Juan County San Juan County is the name of four counties in the United States:
San Juan County fears the big birds would reduce tourism revenues, endanger lives and restrict recreational opportunities in the county. U.S. District Judge Tena Campbell heard testimony Monday and will take comments such as Mesta's into consideration when deciding whether to grant the county's request to stop the reintroduction. ``It would be a major burden to the recovery program if the six condors slated for the northern Arizona reintroduction cannot be moved on time to the proposed release site,'' Mesta said in his statement. ``Birds released at an older age into an area devoid of their species tend to wander, cannot be managed well and are placed at a greater risk of starvation. Neither can they be easily taught to avoid power poles.'' The Fish and Wildlife Service had planned a mid-July release of six young condors to the Arizona Strip The Arizona Strip is that part of the US state of Arizona lying north of the Colorado River and south of the state of Utah. General characteristics The Strip is very typical of the American West in its red-rock canyon country, and the aridity of the climate, which leads region of northern Arizona. The birds could be expected to wander into southern Utah, giving the Utah county a say in the matter. At Monday's hearing, San Juan County Commissioner Bill Redd said county residents fear the birds' reintroduction will lead to limits on tourism at Hall's Crossing Marina and the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area at Lake Powell Noun 1. Lake Powell - the second largest reservoir in the United States; located in southern Utah and north central Arizona and formed by the Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River . The marina at Hall's Crossing is the single largest sales tax sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. source for San Juan County, Redd testified. Redd said the county is concerned that if the condors settle in the Glen Canyon Recreation Area, they would have to be treated as an endangered species endangered species, any plant or animal species whose ability to survive and reproduce has been jeopardized by human activities. In 1999 the U.S. government, in accordance with the U.S. and that would limit commercial activity. Redd also raised the specter of the condors colliding with aircraft and endangering lives. With a wingspread of 9-1/2 feet, the California condor is one of the world's largest birds. It also is one of the rarest - only 103 are left, most of them in captivity. The rest are in the mountains north of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . Michael Wallace For individuals known as Mike Wallace, see . Michael Brunson Wallace is an attorney from Jackson, Mississippi. He was a controversial George W. Bush administration nominee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. , the team leader for the California Condor Recovery Team, told the judge Monday that the chance of a condor collision with an aircraft or automobile is ``very slim.'' No such collisions have been reported in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, , Wallace said. Federal biologists want to establish a second population of condors by releasing the young birds in the Vermilion Cliffs of northern Arizona. San Juan County has demanded a full-blown environmental impact statement on the birds' release. Up to this point, the agency has conducted a less-stringent environmental assessment. The lawsuit demands that the county's concerns be resolved and that commissioners be fully informed of release plans. Federal officials have agreed to guarantee that the condors will not hinder logging, farming, mining, ranching, hunting, hiking and power and water development. Release proponents cite the opportunity for viewing the large scavengers and the boost they could give tourism. |
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