The Western Governors' Association, which represents governors from 18 western states and three U.S.-flag islands in the Pacific, made recommendations to ''update and modernize'' the 30-year-old act in a letter released last week.
The suggestions closely resemble recommendations outlined in February by four leading Republicans in the House and Senate seeking to rewrite the act, which has prompted opposition from environmental groups.
''Our position is that the [Endangered Species Act] is a critically important law that has kept many species, including the bald eagle, from disappearing forever,'' said Greg Loarie, an attorney with the environmental law firm EarthJustice. ''We should be working to enforce and fully fund the ESA instead of working to dismantle it.''
The letter suggests states, on a voluntary basis, be given more authority to help increase the populations of species listed as threatened or endangered, and states be given federal grants to cover costs. The governors also call for providing economic incentives to landowners to participate in conservation efforts.
The letter goes on to say decisions about adding or removing a species from the endangered list should be made ''using objective, peer-reviewed science'' by independent experts.
''Everyone agrees that the [Endangered Species Act] should be implemented on the basis of good science. The problem is that the current proposals replace real science with political science,'' Loarie said.
The letter, dated Feb. 25, was sent to Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Inhofe, chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, and Sen. James Jeffords, I-Vt., the ranking minority committee member.
The letter was signed by Colorado Republican Gov. Bill Owens, chairman of the Western Governors' Association, and Wyoming Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal, who are designated as the organization's lead governors on Endangered Species Act issues. The letter said recommendations came out of a recent summit convened to discuss the act but did not specify who attended the summit.
