Western governors back Endangered Species Act, with changes

Western governors back Endangered Species Act, with changes The News & Observer By Dan Elliott The Republican-dominated Western Governors Association endorsed the aims of the Endangered Species Act on Wednesday but asked Congress to make changes, including giving states a bigger role and clarifying recovery goals for species protected by the law. The governors said Western states benefit economically from healthy species and ecosystems but bear the burden of land-use restrictions that usually come with species protection, as well as some of the cost of recovery programs. Endangered species protection is controversial because it generally results in limits on mining, oil and gas drilling, agriculture and other economic activities.