“This administration’s greed and contempt for imperiled wildlife know no bounds.”
— Noah Greenwald, Center for Biological Diversity


||| FROM INSIDE CLIMATE NEWS |||


The Trump administration proposed a new rule Wednesday that would rescind widespread habitat protections for species protected under the Endangered Species Act, a landmark law enacted in 1973 to conserve the country’s imperiled animals and plants.

That would open the door for developments across the country to be approved even if they significantly disrupt critical habitat for species listed under the Endangered Species Act. The proposed rule, posted in the U.S. Federal Register by the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, would “rescind the regulatory definition of ‘harm,’” which is defined as any significant habitat modification or degradation that actually kills or injures wildlife.

Environmental groups lambasted the proposal.

“There’s just no way to protect animals and plants from extinction without protecting the places they live, yet the Trump administration is opening the floodgates to immeasurable habitat destruction,” said Noah Greenwald, co-director of endangered species at the Center for Biological Diversity. “This administration’s greed and contempt for imperiled wildlife know no bounds, but most Americans know that we destroy the natural world at our own peril. Nobody voted to drive spotted owls, Florida panthers or grizzly bears to extinction.”

If approved, he said, the rule would mean endangered species would only be protected from actions that intentionally lead to the harm of a species. “It’s just foundational to how we’ve protected endangered species for the last 40-plus years, and they’re just completely upending that,” Greenwald said.

Just the day before Wednesday’s proposed rule, the Trump administration put out a rescission notice to roll back a rule that put conservation on equal footing with extractive uses on the nation’s public lands. The two decisions, along with scores of others in recent months since President Trump took office, threaten species and the habitats they depend on across the country, experts and environmentalists say.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service did not respond to a request for comment.

READ FULL ARTICLE



 

**If you are reading theOrcasonian for free, thank your fellow islanders. If you would like to support theOrcasonian CLICK HERE to set your modestly-priced, voluntary subscription. Otherwise, no worries; we’re happy to share with you.**