A Search for Common Ground : Wilson must act soon to bridge widening gap in the gnatcatcher dispute

Several regions of the country have had painful reckonings with the awkward balancing of interests inherent in an animal being placed on the endangered species list. A Tennessee Valley Authority dam had its snail darter; the Pacific Northwest has its spotted owl; and Southern California’s powerful developers have locked horns with environmentalists over the gnatcatcher.

Nearly two decades after passage of the 1973 Endangered Species Act, it may be asking a lot of any state to bridge the gaping divide that has opened between developers and environmentalists. The desire to preserve the habitat of the gnatcatcher, a small bird, did summon the cooperation of hostile groups, though, and it has been a cornerstone of Gov. Pete Wilson’s new environmental policy. That’s because the listing of species has many dissatisfied. It’s a poor way of resolving the conflict between growth and preservation of the environment.

But now the Wilson Administration’s vaunted plan to set aside tracts of land for habitat preservation seems all but doomed. Seven months into the experiment, developers fear provisions will be too onerous, and environmentalists have begun jumping ship. Meanwhile, irretrievable habitat has disappeared. A key state senator is so disgusted with the lack of progress that he is threatening to pull the plug on funding.

If the governor’s program fails, the process of species listing no doubt will continue on its clumsy course. Opposing sides will marshal science hastily in their causes. But society, in need of striking a balance in this era of limits, will be no closer to having effective tools to decide where to preserve and where to grow. The Administration’s unwillingness even to acknowledge the program’s failings hasn’t helped. While the state is collecting data and counseling patience, this 1990s Noah’s Ark has sprung a leak.

These vital competing interests must be balanced. Unfortunately, the search in California for what is common ground will be a bust unless the Wilson Administration can get its act together soon.