CHEYENNE - Efforts to change the federal Endangered Species Act must be undertaken with extreme caution, said Mark Gordon, Republican candidate for Wyoming's lone U.S. House seat.

Otherwise, Gordon said, urban lawmakers in the Democrat-controlled Congress might use the opportunity to craft legislation that could be used against the rural West.

"My worry would be that if you open the Endangered Species Act for revision now, you might get something different" than you want, said Gordon, a rancher and businessman from Buffalo.

The Endangered Species Act and other public lands issues are hot topics ahead of the Aug. 19 Republican U.S. House primary, which also features former state treasurer Cynthia Lummis, former Navy officer Bill Winney and physician Michael Holland.

The winner will face Democrat Gary Trauner in the November general election. Trauner is running unopposed in his party's primary. U.S. Rep. Barbara Cubin, R-Wyo., is not seeking re-election.

Lummis, an attorney and rancher in Cheyenne, said the Endangered Species Act is not working, but that's not because of the law itself.

"The problem isn't with the language of the legislation, the problem is with how it has been implemented and twisted," said Lummis, adding that the opportunity for meaningful change seems slim in the near future, but should still be pursued.

Winney, who lives in Sublette County and ran an unsuccessful campaign for U.S. House in 2006, said the Endangered Species Act is being co-opted to further the agenda of certain groups. He said some judges are also to blame for corrupting the legislation.

"As much as I think there is value in the Endangered Species Act, I don't like seeing it misused to hold back or shut down industries," Winney said.

Holland, a physician in Green River, said Congress should repeal the Endangered Species Act because of "colossal abuses" of the law. He said the act is part of a concerted effort to inject federal control where it doesn't belong, and to "unravel the Constitution."

"It allows the federal government to police individual people's land usage," Holland said.

Wolf ruling

Most of the candidates pointed to a recent Montana judge's ruling on wolves as an example of an improper use of the Endangered Species Act.

Holland said the judge's decision to temporarily strip states of the power to regulate wolves was an "inappropriate intervention by the feds." The judge said he made his ruling out of concern that the current wolf population could eventually become inbred.

"Congress wrings their hands and pretends they cannot do anything about judges basically legislating from the bench," Holland said. "Most of these judges should be impeached."

Lummis said the Rocky Mountain wolves were introduced as a nonessential, experimental population and even their total removal would not affect the survival of the wolf species.

"If they were introduced as nonessential, how can a judge in Montana say that they have insufficient genetic pools to guarantee their healthy survival? It's absolutely absurd," Lummis said. "The act has been stood on its head."

Gordon said he's "very discouraged" that the state finally reached a compromise with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on wolves and now progress is stalled. He said it's a good example of why the law isn't working.

Gordon said he'd like to see the Endangered Species act used more as a "carrot" with incentives for landowners to protect vulnerable species than a "stick" to impose harsh rules.

"This sort of national blunder-bust approach is counterproductive, doesn't solve any issues and doesn't bring us to a responsible posture regarding endangered species," Gordon said.

Winney had a slightly different take. He said the state could have engaged the federal government more effectively during its long battle over wolves. He said good science was the key.

"We have to make our case on a scientific basis, and maybe show why their science isn't so good," said Winney, who said he draws experiences in bureaucratic dealings with the federal government from several years of service at the Pentagon.

Grouse protection

All of the candidates agree that the federal government should modify its approach to sage grouse, a species that sometimes comes into conflict with energy development in Wyoming.

Lummis said the federal government has failed to acknowledge meaningful efforts by the state and mineral lease holders to reduce impacts on sage grouse. She criticized the federal government for rejecting what she called legitimate mitigation efforts.

"If companies are trying to mitigate and the federal government won't let them, and then the government turns around and says no efforts have been made, we're shooting ourselves in the foot," Lummis said.

Sage grouse should not be listed as an endangered species, Winney said. He'd like to see more efforts to control mosquito populations that some scientists say may be harming the sage grouse by spreading West Nile virus.

Holland said he is against any federal regulation of sage grouse. But he said he would support state action, if necessary, to protect the bird.

"At the state level or county level it's appropriate if they want to take action. But for guys in Washington to dictate what landowners in Wyoming can do is not a healthy situation," Holland said.

Gordon said sage grouse should not be listed as an endangered species. He said he has been working for years to preserve habitat on his own ranch to help the species survive.

"Of all the candidates, I would say I'm the one who is doing the most to make sure it's not listed," Gordon said.

Gas production

One state industry sure to suffer if the sage grouse gains protected status is the coal-bed methane industry. The candidates said that would be a shame.

Holland said he's in favor of developing all kinds of energy sources, including coal-bed methane. He also said that water released during coal-bed methane production should be regulated.

Winney said the coal-bed methane industry needs access to the land, but it may be necessary to require companies to limit their footprints with directional drilling and staging multiple wells from a single pad.

"I would argue that we ought to have access to the resource, but we should minimize the number of wells on the surface," said Winney, adding that industry has a responsibility to properly dispose of water brought to the surface during coal-bed methane production.

Lummis criticized the Buffalo office of the Bureau of Land Management for "not following its own rules" with regard to permitting coal-bed methane drilling. The BLM announced in May that it would scale back coal-bed methane drilling in the Powder River Basin to help protect sage grouse.

"I have some sympathies for what's going on among coal-bed methane producers in the Powder River Basin," Lummis said.

Lummis said she has not formed an official opinion on the issue of coal-bed methane discharge water. But she did say that the state engineer should have jurisdiction over the issue of water quantity, and the state should retain the right to regulate water.

"I would be very deferential to our state engineer and board of control and the governor on issues related to Wyoming's water," Lummis said.

Gordon said coal-bed methane has the potential to be a serious contributor to the nation's energy portfolio. He said it's important to issue drilling permits in a logical and thoughtful way, and that means "paced expansion" for exploration, combined with efficient extraction.

"We need to be able to get to the gas, and do it in a responsible fashion," Gordon said.

He said coal-bed methane water management is a state issue. The state engineer must control water, and the Department of Environmental Quality should write the discharge permits.

Brucellosis

The candidates also took issue with federal efforts to control brucellosis, a disease that can cause cattle to abort their calves.

Lummis said current federal brucellosis policies are "irrational and unscientific." She said ranchers should not be forced to destroy their herds or place the entire state at risk of losing its brucellosis-free status.

Lummis said the key is not to eradicate the disease, but to keep cattle away from elk and bison during the period when they are calving and the disease is most easily spread.

"There are ways to manage our way out of this issues without these draconian solutions that the federal government imposes on people because they are so dug in," Lummis said.

Gordon said brucellosis is always going to be part of the Yellowstone ecosystem, although he believes the health risks of the illness may be overstated.

The state should work toward making a better statement about the risk, and the federal government should consider allowing ranchers to use an older vaccine called Strain 19 that has been shown effective. More brucellosis research is also needed, Gordon said.

Holland said he is suspicious that the hype about brucellosis may be smokescreen created by the federal government to manipulate the nation's food supply through regulations. He said the micromanagement of the food supply is what spurred him into the U.S. House race in the first place.

Winney said the state veterinarian seems to be doing a "pretty good job" controlling brucellosis, but could possibly do more. He said the federal government could help by allowing ranchers to use the prohibited brucellosis vaccine, Strain 19.

"The Department of Agriculture should allow ranchers to do what works," Winney said.

The candidates differed on the related issue of elk feedgrounds in western Wyoming, where brucellosis is known to exist.

Lummis said the controversy over elk feedgrounds is the result of a collision between the desire for large elk populations for hunters and the needs of the ranching community. The answer, she said, is not to eliminate the feedgrounds, but she said some consolidation may be appropriate.

"I would take my cue on that issue from the Wyoming Game and Fish and the Wyoming Livestock Board," Lummis said.

Winney said it makes sense to examine what changes might help control the spread of brucellosis from elk feedgrounds to livestock. State agriculture officials should take the lead in exploring what alternatives might help eliminate the disease, he said.

"I think they're obligated to our ranchers to do just that," Winney said.

Holland said it may be reasonable to do something to eliminate the disease from the elk populations in western Wyoming that rely on the state's elk feeding program.

Gordon, meanwhile, said the state must retain the elk feedgrounds. Otherwise, the elk will compete with cattle for food.

Fight beetles, or else

The candidates also gave their thoughts on how the state should address wild horse overpopulation and the pine beetle infestation.

Winney said he views wild horses as a wildlife species, and they should be managed as such.

"Somehow we need to manage the herd so they are not starving and overgrazing," Winney said.

Winney said he'd like to see the dead, beetle-infested trees removed from the forests.

Holland said he doesn't have a problem with rounding up some wild horses and relocating them, or selling them, if they've become a nuisance. He said he's not sure how to address the pine beetle infestation.

Gordon said Americans need to recognize their responsibility as managers of the wild, and that certainly applies to wild horses.

"In the case of wild horses, that means population management," said Gordon, adding that land is being ruined by overgrazing by wild horses.

As for beetles, the Forest Service should open bids for logging and reforestation as a way to begin addressing the beetle problem, Gordon said.

Lummis said the government must do something in response to the pine beetle infestation. Taking a "let it burn" approach would be "tragic," she said. Dead trees should be removed to prevent catastrophic fire, she said.

Lummis said wild horse herds must be managed on a case-by-case basis. In some areas, such as the Pryor Mountain herd, the animals are doing fine; others are becoming too numerous. Lummis said she would talk to wild horse managers about how best to address the issue.

"As beautiful as they are, it can't go unaddressed," she added.

Reach reporter Jared Miller at (307)632-1244 or at jared.miller@trib.com.

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