School Project Halted by Salamanders

(Ann Arbor, Michigan) Environmentalists have filed suit to stop construction of a high school because a $100,000 search effort of a pond found a handful of salamanders that "may be endangered." They aren't certain that the salamanders they found are the endangered 'smallmouth salamander.' Nonetheless, the project gets shut down anyway.

A lawyer for the environmentalists said "they don't want clearing anywhere." According to school system spokeswoman Liz Margolis, the lawsuit is a continuing attempt "to stop construction on this site at all costs." It sure seems the environmentalists are considerably more "anti-progress" than "pro-salamander."

Think about it. The greenies spend $100,000 looking to find some reason to shut down a multi-million dollar school project and then they file suit because they might have found something. If you ever wonder why school systems constantly are asking for more money, it's because of costs being jacked up by this type of foolishness. Delays in construction are expensive and the delay caused by the salamander that might be in the pond will be paid for by property owners in Ann Arbor.

Interestingly, according to Todd Hogrefe, Endangered Species Coordinator for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, despite whether the high school is built or not, the salamander in question is probably not going to survive in its current location. Hogrefe suggests its fate was determined long ago by fragmentation of the area with subdivisions and highways.