The US Fish and Wildlife Service says it needs to take another look at how flood control measures near New Orleans affected Gulf sturgeon, but the agency otherwise defended its species review in a Missouri federal court filing.
The Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, and Army Corps of Engineers used the best available science to find that opening the Bonnet Carré Spillway in 2019 and 2020 didn’t harm sea turtles, the filing says. The agencies did the same to determine the openings didn’t harm West Indian manatee, piping plover, and red knot shorebirds, according to the filing ...