For Immediate Release, May 14, 2012
Contact: Noah Greenwald, (503) 484-7495
Two Washington Plants Proposed for Endangered Species Act Protection
PORTLAND, Ore.— The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today proposed Endangered Species Act protection for two plants, the Umtanum desert buckwheat and White Bluffs bladderpod, found only in Washington’s Hanford Reach National Monument. The agency also proposed designation of just over 3,200 acres in Benton and Franklin counties, Wash., as protected critical habitat for the two plants. The proposals are the result of an agreement between the Center and the Service to speed up protection decisions for 757 species around the country.
“These two highly unique, very rare plants are finally getting the Endangered Species Act protection they need,â€
