House Republicans and one Democrat on Wednesday denounced a Biden administration initiative on managing “biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health” at national wildlife refuges.
Citing fears that predators and invasive species will gain ground while farmers and refuge supervisors will lose flexibility, the lawmakers called for the Fish and Wildlife Service to back off of its so-called BIDEH proposed rule.
“The service under this rule is instantly prohibiting practices and means of working on and around refuges, restricting the discretion of refuge managers and putting at risk [the] individual refuges,” said Rep. Cliff Bentz (R-Ore.).
Bentz chairs the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries and convened a hearing Wednesday on the rulemaking.
