FWS Director Commits to Give Oklahoma Flexibility in Lesser Prairie Chicken Listing Decision

WATCH Inhofe-Ashe Exchange Link to Opening Statement Link to Inhofe NAWCA Bill Washington, D.C. - Senator James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, was pleased to welcome Fish and Wildlife (FWS) Director Dan Ashe today as he testified before the Environment and Public Works Committee. Senator Inhofe thanked Director Ashe for his assurance today that the FWS will give Oklahomans as much flexibilty as possible when it comes to the listing decision for the Lesser Prairie-Chicken, and for his strong support of S. 2282, the North American Wetlands Conservation Extension Act (NAWCA), which Senator Inhofe is sponsoring along with Senators Boxer and Vitter. Director Ashe thanked Senator Inhofe for his leadership on this bill, saying "NAWCA has become an absolute foundation of our ability to conserve water fowl resources in the United States and it provides a bridge between Canada and the United States and Mexico, coordinates response amongst all the agencies within the three governments."