A survey released today by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and Public Employees for Environmental Protection (PEER) reveals the inappropriate influence politics has over science at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, observed U.S. Rep. Nick J. Rahall (D-WV).
"Political appointees at the Fish and Wildlife Service are suppressing some of the brightest minds in the country. The political pressures on the scientific process described by these survey results do not serve our country’s values," said Rahall.
Rahall, the Ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Resources which has jurisdiction over the Service, and U.S. Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), the Ranking Democrat on the House Committee on Government Reform, sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton today expressing their concern and seeking a response by March 4th.
The UCS and PEER asked field scientists working in Ecological Services offices across the country to respond concerning the Service’s scientific integrity, morale, resources and any political interference in their responsibilities.
Once high-level political appointees learned of the survey, scientists were e-mailed instructions to ignore it, and even went as far as to forbid the scientists from completing it on their personal time.
"I do not believe civil servants give up their constitutional rights when they sign up to work at the Fish and Wildlife Service. I can only assume that the political appointees feared the outcome of the survey and decided to suppress it," stated Rahall.
The findings of this survey hardly paint a picture of an agency led by its mandated mission of protecting fish and wildlife. For example:
- 44% of respondents whose work is related to endangered species science shared that they "have been directed, for non-scientific reasons, to refrain from making jeopardy or other findings that are protective of species."
"I do not see how Congress can effectively and responsibly address any changes to the Endangered Species Act when the statute is not receiving adequate funding and politics is muzzling science in species protection decisions,"declared Rahall.
On the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s own Web site, Director Steve Williams emphasizes the agency’s commitment to integrity, stating: "When we are committed to scientific excellence in the decisions we make, we enhance our integrity as an organization."
"The only science considered ‘sound’ in this Administration is that which fits into its narrow political agenda," concluded Rahall.
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