By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The lesser prairie chicken debate has arrived in Barton County. At least indirectly. Last November, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) published a final rule to register the bird as threatened or endangered in two Distinct Population Segments (DPSs). The Kansas National Resource Coalition (KNRC) has asked its member counties, including Barton, for support in proceeding with a lawsuit to challenge the listing. County Administrator Matt Patzner laid out the issue to commissioners during Wednesday's meeting.
"The listing has come under fire from Kansas congressional delegations, state legislators, including a 60-day notice of intent to sue by the Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach," he said. "The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks recently also announced their disapproval of the listing due to an uptrend in LPC populations in Kansas."
The lesser prairie chicken was listed as a "threatened" species in an area that includes 41 counties in Kansas, including Barton, and listed as an "endangered" species in areas of New Mexico and Texas. A final listing would affect how farmers and ranchers use their land.
The KNRC has 30 member counties and continues to grow. That group was recently contacted by Pacific Legal Foundation, a public-interest law firm that offered free legal representation for the lawsuit that would set aside the rule restricting landowners. Commission Chair Shawn Hutchinson said it makes no sense for the rule to impact Barton County residents.
"The lesser prairie chicken is probably very important, I don't know," he said. "But there aren't any in Barton County, so why would we try to impose restrictions on ourselves for something that is not here?"
The commission voted 5-0 to support the KNRC in the lawsuit. The KNRC will move forward if a majority of its 30 counties follow suit. The USFWS listing will take effect on March 27.
U.S wildlife officials believe only about 32,000 lesser prairie chickens remain. In January, Senators Jerry Moran and Roger Marshall were part of a group that issued a statement condemning the USFWS's listing, stating that previous conservation work has been successful. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly has also stated she would oppose the listing. Jessica Augustine, executive director of the Kansas Audobon Society and an expert on prairie chickens, has come out in favor of the listing, calling Kobach's statements misleading and a scare tactic directed at farmers.