In reversal, Pentagon now says it backs GOP measure on birds

WASHINGTON – In an abrupt reversal, the Pentagon now says it supports a Republican proposal in a defence policy bill that would bar the Fish and Wildlife Service from using the Endangered Species Act to protect two chicken-like birds in the western half of the U.S.

In an email to Congress on Thursday, the Pentagon said the proposal could help avoid any “negative readiness impacts on military facilities” that might result from listing the sage grouse and lesser-prairie chicken as endangered.

The statement directly repudiates comments Wednesday by Pentagon officials calling the GOP proposal unnecessary. The House-approved language would block endangered-species listing for the two birds for 10 years.

The birds have become flashpoints in an ongoing battle over whether they warrant federal protection that hinders mining and other development.