The West Coast Crane Working Group :
 | promotes science-based research on crane conservation and
management
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| fosters better understanding and appreciation of
cranes and their habitat among the general public and
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| addresses conservation issues affecting cranes
and their wetland habitats. |
The Working Group accomplishes these goals
through research, education, and advocacy.
Endangered species protection policy illustrates a class of contentious,
socially ranking issues that are becoming increasingly common in the western
United States as demands increase for limited ecological resources. These issues
share a number of general characteristics:
| Complexity -- there is an almost unlimited set of options and
trade-offs to present to officials and the public;
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| Polarization -- these issues tend to be extremely divisive because they
represent a clash between competing values;
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| Winners and losers -- some individuals and groups will benefit from
each choice, while others will be damaged, and these trade-offs are
well-known;
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| Delayed consequences -- there is no immediate "fix," and the
benefits, if any, of painful decisions will be evident for many years, if
not decades;
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| Decision distortion -- these are not the kinds of policy problems that
democratic institutions address smoothly because it is very easy for
advocates to appeal to strongly held values; and
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| Ambiguous role for science -- scientific information is important but
usually not pivotal in the choice of an option because the choice is
inherently driven by value (political ) judgments. |
Further constraining the role of scientific information is widespread
public skepticism over its truth. Much of it is tendered by government agencies,
industries, and a myriad of interest groups, each of which has a vested interest
in the outcome of the policy debate and often vigorously articulates
"science" that supports its position.
Adapted from Robert T. Lackey, United States Environmental Protection Agency,
Corvallis, Oregon.
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