Feds to reconsider protections for Delta fish
By: Matt Weiser

Federal wildlife officials have agreed to reconsider an imperiled Delta fish species for Endangered Species Act protection.

The Sacramento splittail, a native of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, was removed from the Endangered Species list in 2003 in a politically charged decision. A federal inspector later found that Bush administration appointee Julie McDonald, who owns rural property in Dixon potentially affected by splittail protections, may have influenced the decision.

The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last year to force it to reconsider the splittail's status. The settlement announced Friday requires the agency to review the splittail's status and issue a new decision by Sept. 30. If it determines protection is warranted, it must do so within another 12 months.

"We're just looking at this as a good opportunity to revisit impacts to the species," said Fish and Wildlife Service spokesman Steve Martarano. "Much has changed in the Delta since the 2003 rule."

Annual surveys by the California Department of Fish and Game show that the spittail population has been in steep decline since 2001, mirroring numerous other Delta fish species.