In response to the inital post questioning how tribes "escape" the Federal ESA:

The US government's response to the ESA and Tribes can be summed up in a Secretarial order issued on June 5, 1997 by the secretaries of Commerce and Interior defining the special relationship between treaty-Indian tribes, the federal government and the Endangered Species Act.

The secretarial order says the government "shall give deference to tribal conservation and management plans for tribal trust resources that govern activities on Indian lands and address the conservation needs of the listed species."

It also states that, “Indian lands are not federal public lands or part of the public domain, and are not subject to federal public land laws. They were retained by tribes or were set aside for tribal use pursuant to treaties, statutes, judicial decisions, executive orders or agreements. These lands are managed by Indian tribes in accordance with tribal goals and objectives.”

- Therefore, it is clear how the US federal government treats the issue. (Amazing what you can learn when writing a term paper).

Hope this was hopeful.

Jersey Fresh


[This message has been edited by Jersey Fresh (edited 03-15-2000).]