CRAPO: BIRD REDISCOVERY FITTINGPRELUDE TO ESA HEARING

Washington, DC â?? Idaho Senator Mike Crapo says the rediscovery of a once-thought extinct species of woodpecker in the Southeast United States is a boost of encouragement for the Congressional field hearing on improving the Endangered Species Act planned for this weekend in Jackson, Mississippi. Crapo, former chairman of the Senate subcommittee overseeing the ESA, will attend the hearing Saturday with House Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo (R-California).â??The rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker should be a galvanizing event in renewing support for strong Endangered Species recovery efforts we are seeking as we improve the ESA,â?? Crapo said. â??We have succeeded before in helping critically endangered birds. The whooping crane, Peregrine falcon, and the California condor are making progress. We can do the same for the ivory-billed woodpecker and for all of the most deeply endangered species.â??Crapo also announced he is cosponsoring a bill with Senator Russ Feingold, (D-Wisconsin) to aid the endangered whooping crane. The Crane Conservation Act of 2005 supports innovating recovery efforts such as a public-private partnership assisting migrating cranes from Wisconsin to Florida. â??Consensus-building, partnerships, and a lot of hard work are bringing back endangered species like the crane, and hopefully soon, the ivory-billed woodpecker. A strong conservation approach has also helped declining species like the sage grouse and prevented the need for listing under the ESA. This weekendâ??s hearing on improving recovery programs under the Endangered Species Act will take renewed purpose from the good news about the ivory-billed woodpecker,â?? said Crapo, who co-chairs the Congressional Sportsmenâ??s Caucus.The hearing in Jackson, Mississippi is the first Congressional field hearing on improving the ESA since Crapo, Pombo, Senator Lincoln Chaffee (R-Rhode Island and Chairman of the Senate subcommittee overseeing the ESA), and Rep. Greg Walden (R-Oregon) announced the effort to improve the ESA February 10th in Washington, DC. The Senators and Congressmen are building consensus for bipartisan reforms that could lessen lawsuits and focus funding more squarely on recovery efforts. â??We believe the Endangered Species Act can be less contentious and more effective,â?? Crapo said. # # #To directly link to this news release, please use the following address: https://www.crapo.senate.gov/media/newsreleases/release_full.cfm?id=237043