In brief: Groups to sue over listing for giant worm
Four environmental groups have notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service they intend to sue to force the agency to protect the giant Palouse earthworm, a rarely seen species.
Earlier this month, the Fish and Wildlife Service denied the groups’ petition to add the worm to the federal list of threatened and endangered species.
The formal intent to sue comes from the Center for Biological Diversity, Palouse Prairie Foundation, Palouse Audubon and Friends of the Clearwater, as well as two individuals, Steve Paulson and Lynne Nelson.
“The giant Palouse earthworm, and the Palouse habitats that it depends on, are on the edge of extinction and will be lost forever if we don’t act soon,” said Paulson, with Friends of the Clearwater. “The earthworm needs the protection of the Endangered Species Act to survive.”
The pale worm, which can grow to 3 feet long and emit a lily-like scent, has been spotted four times in the past 30 years. The most recent sighting was in 2005, when a University of Idaho graduate student accidentally chopped one in half while using a shovel to conduct research.
– Staff reports
North Idaho
Ballot requests must be in by today
Today is the deadline to request an absentee ballot be sent by mail for Tuesday’s election. The Kootenai County elections office must receive requests by 5 p.m.
Requests must be made in writing and include which city election ballot is wanted, the voter’s name and address, and an original signature. A separate request is required for each person needing a ballot.
Requests should be made at the elections office, 1808 N. 3rd St., Coeur d’Alene, or faxed to (208) 446-1039.
Absentee ballots are available for the cities of Coeur d’Alene, Hayden, Post Falls and Rathdrum.
Voters may still vote absentee in person through 5 p.m. Monday at the county elections office or at the applicable city hall.
– Staff reports
BOISE
Schools cutting waste with new lunch trays
Parents and Boise school administrators say they are targeting lunch trays as a way to reduce waste from the more than 21,000 lunches served daily in public schools.
District officials say they are experimenting with products that can be composted to replace the foam trays and plates now used at 12 elementary schools and all junior and high schools. The rest of the district’s 31 elementary schools have kitchens with dishwashers to wash plastic trays.
This fall, some schools began using cardboard-like trays made from sugar cane, even though they are more expensive than foam.
The district has also added recycling programs in some lunch rooms for cardboard, aluminum, plastics and paper.
– Associated Press