Feds list wild salmon as endangered in Maine

PORTLAND, Maine - Two federal agencies decided Monday to list wild Atlantic salmon as endangered on several Maine rivers, a move that state officials say could deeply harm some local industries.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service said the action was warranted because wild Atlantic salmon levels are at an all-time low and that they're threatened with extinction.

Gov. Angus King had fought the government's proposed endangered species listing, saying it was not backed up by sound science and that it could end up leading to regulations devastating the blueberry and aquaculture, or fish-farming, industries in Down East Maine.

In making its decision, the federal government rejected King's request for a six-month delay so the National Academy of Sciences could complete an independent study before the government's final decision.

But Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt agreed to reverse course if the independent review concludes the government scientists were wrong, said John Ripley, King's spokesman.

Speaking before he had seen the details of the federal decision, King said he was not sure yet whether the state will appeal Babbitt's decision.

Blueberry farmers fear the endangered species designation could lead to new limits on water withdrawals and pesticides. Salmon farmers could face new regulations becausd fish that escape from pens can mate with wild salmon, introducing diseases and diluting the wild salmon's genetic makeup.

''I think it's probably the end of the aquaculture industry in Maine,'' King said.

The National Marine Fisheries Service joined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last November in deciding to seek the endangered species listing. The affected rivers are the Dennys, East Machias, Machias, Narraguagus, Pleasant, Ducktrap and Sheepscot, along with Cove Brook, a tributary of the Penobscot River.

The governor has fought the government's efforts, attacking the veracity of the federal scientists' claims in 1997 and 1999 that wild Atlantic salmon constitute a ''distinct population segment'' as defined by federal law.

A University of Maine scientist who reviewed the federal data concluded that there is no basis for scientists' claim. King said Monday that salmon ''are in deep decline everywhere in North America.''

The National Academy of Sciences study, which could settle the issue once and for all, is being funded by $500,000 secured by Maine's congressional delegation. It's unclear how long the study will take.

King has denied that he was pressured by economic interests in opposing the federal action. He insisted he would support an endangered species listing if he believed there was a scientific basis for it.

Throughout the debate, King contended a state conservation plan put into place three years ago needed more time to show results.

Clark and Penny Dalton, administrator of the National Marine Fisheries Service, said that significant progress has been made under the state's plan but that more work needs to be done.

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On the Net:

National Marine Fisheries Service: http://www.nero.nmfs.gov/atsalmon/