Page 12 - Flathead Beacon // 10.7.15

NEWS
Fish and Wildlife Service Releases Final Bull Trout Recovery Plan Environmental groups involved in legal challenge say plan is still deficient
BY TRISTAN SCOTT OF THE BEACON
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
released its final Bull Trout Recovery Plan Sept. 28, shifting its aim toward managing specific environmental threats rather than managing the trout popula- tions themselves.
The final plan offers little variation from the draft plan proposed one year ago, drawing criticism from conservation groups who say the efforts are inadequate.
Bull trout were listed under the Endan- gered Species Act as “threatened” in 1999, and the plan to recover the species is 15 years in the making. It recognizes the
many challenges that climate change presents to the recovery plan, and tries to be realistic in its blueprint for recov- ering a species dependent on cold-wa- ter streams. In doing so, it concedes that some populations will wink out, prompt- ing outcry from the leader of one envi- ronmental group who called the plan an “extinction plan.”
The proposed plan’s overall strategy calls for widespread population distri- bution throughout six geographical areas in the Northwest, and would achieve that by minimizing threats from non-native fish, such as invasive lake trout, improv- ing bull trout habitat and continuing to
study the species in order to identiry other stressors.
Unlike other recovery plans, however, it does not rely on target numbers of adult bull trout as a barometer of success, rais- ing concerns in the conservation com- munity and prompting threats of legal action.
Instead, the plan focuses on alleviat- ing specific threats to the species’ habi- tat and genetic diversity, while accepting that as much as 25 percent of the trout populations will face extirpation.
Lead biologist Stephen Duke said the adverse effects of logging, mining and grazing have mostly been addressed since
the bull trout was listed as a threatened species. When the remaining problems facing bull trout are addressed, they should achieve stability in the six recov- ery areas designated in Washington, Ore- gon, Idaho, Montana and Nevada.
Michael Garrity, executive director of Alliance for the Wild Rockies, said of the plan, “this isn’t a recovery plan, it is an extinction plan.” Alliance for the Wild Rockies, along with the Friends of the Wild Swan, sued the Fish and Wild- life Service last year, and promised to file suit again if the population criteria wasn’t included in the plan.
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Local Deacon Travels to Philadelphia For Papal Visit Floyd McCubbins helped serve communion during Pope Francis’ service in Philadelphia
BY JUSTIN FRANZ OF THE BEACON
Thirty-six years ago, Floyd McCub- bins rarely went to church.
That changed one Sunday in the late 1970s when he talked to a priest who said he “saw great things” in the man’s future.
That interaction led McCubbins, now 65, to start attending mass again and become more involved in his local Cath- olic Church. In 2012, he was ordained as a deacon and just a few weeks ago he found out what those “great things” were when he had the unique honor of being part of Pope Francis’ historic trip the United States.
“It was an incredibly journey,” the Kalispell deacon said a few days after returning from Philadelphia. “It was everything I could imagine and more.”
McCubbins, who now serves at the Risen Christ Church in Kalispell, said
when word first spread late last year that the newly ordained Bishop of Rome would be taking a trip to the United States, he began making arrangements for his own pilgrimage east.
Then something unexpected hap- pened. On a whim, McCubbins had put his name into a drawing to be one of the deacons to serve communion with the Pope during his service in Philadelphia and much to his surprise he was selected. As huge of an honor as it was, McCubbins said he was almost overwhelmed at the thought of serving next to the leader of the Catholic Church.
McCubbins and his family arrived in Philadelphia a few days early to do some site-seeing before the Pope’s service at the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul on Sept. 26. On the day of the mass, McCubbins arrived early to get through an “unreal” amount of security.
After joining the other deacons in the cathedral, McCubbins was informed that the local diocese would be provid- ing the deacons for communion. While some may have been disappointed in los- ing the chance to work next to the Pope, McCubbins joked that his “prayers had been answered.” Instead, McCubbins would join more than 200 other deacons to give communion outside the cathedral with bread the Pope had blessed earlier that day.
“We went into the streets to give com- munion,” he said, adding that he served people from all walks of life. “It was incredibly humbling and emotional... It’s hard to give communion when there are tears rushing down your face.”
Although he didn’t get to work along- side the Pope, McCubbins saw him right before the mass. He and the other dea- cons were inside the cathedral when they
heard loud cheering outside. They rushed outside just in time to see the Pope round the corner in the “popemobile.”
McCubbins said seeing the Pope and being part of his service in Philadelphia was an unforgettable experience. He said he especially relates to the Pope’s mes- sage of inclusiveness and bringing the church to disadvantaged communities. Like the Pope, who visited with inmates while in the United States, McCubbins often goes to jails to perform mass for prisoners.
“He came to the United States to tell us that the world is all about love and that we have to take care of our neighbors,” McCubbins said. “It doesn’t matter what people use to identify you, it’s all about love and we need to reach out to every- one in need.”
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