Endangered Species Act

11/12/2009 -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement after the Obama Administration announced the brown pelican has been removed from the federal endangered species list.

"The brown pelican is a treasure of the California coast, and the announcement that the species has been able to rebound is exciting, not only for me, but for all who enjoy our coastal wildlife. It is also a testament to the importance of continuing environmental action for the benefit of future generations. By taking action to clean up the pollution that could have caused the extinction of the pelican, we are ensuring our children and grandchildren can experience one of the most majestic birds on the ocean."    » read more »

Hawaiian False Killer Whale Population Faces Extinction

LOS ANGELES (September 30, 2009) – The Natural Resources Defense Council today called on the federal government to list the Hawaiian population of false killer whales as an endangered species and designate critical habitat to ensure its recovery under the Endangered Species Act. The Hawaiian false killer whale population is a small and ecologically unique population of 120 animals that has suffered a significant decline over the last 25 years.    » read more »

June 15, 2009 -- AUGUSTA – Maine Governor John E. Baldacci today issued the following statement on the decision of the Federal government to expand the Endangered Species Act in Maine for Atlantic Salmon. The rule includes the Androscoggin, Kennebec and Penobscot Rivers to the existing Endangered Species Act.

“I am deeply disappointed and concerned that the State’s comments to the draft rule were not incorporated in the final decision of the Federal government. This Federal action ignores Maine’s strong track record in species management and our need for a flexible approach which will enable us to use all our tools to work with stakeholders to manage Atlantic salmon.”    » read more »

NRDC Joins Legal Action to Challenge the Department of Interior's Decision to Remove Northern Rocky Mountain Wolves From Endangered Species List

LIVINGSTON, Mont. (June 2, 2009) – Another chapter in the legal battle over wolves was opened today when the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and a coalition of concerned conservation groups challenged the recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decision to remove protections for packs in Montana and Idaho.    » read more »

Underlines Need for Comprehensive Energy and Climate Change Legislation

May 8, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced today that he will retain a special rule issued in December for protecting the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act, but will closely monitor the implementation of the rule to determine if additional measures are necessary to conserve and recover the polar bear and its habitat.    » read more »

CHICAGO (May 8, 2009) – The Department of Interior announced today that a controversial rule undercutting Endangered Species Act protections for the polar bear would remain in place. The special regulations issued by the Bush administration and generally called a “special rule” or a “4(d) rule” effectively waived many of the protections the polar bear would have received through its listing under the Endangered Species Act.

When Interior listed the bears as threatened last year it agreed with scientists about the impacts of Arctic warming on polar bears, yet the “special rule” excludes greenhouse gas emissions thereby limiting protection of the bears under the Endangered Species Act.    » read more »

May 8, 2009 -- Washington, D.C. - Today, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced that the Obama administration will not withdraw a special rule limiting protection for polar bears. The polar bear 4(d) rule was issued in the waning days of the Bush administration and would limit the protections afforded to the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act.

Earlier this year, Congress passed an omnibus appropriations bill that gave the administration the opportunity to withdraw two controversial endangered species act regulations. The deadline for action was listed as May 10.

Statement of Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope    » read more »

May 8, 2009, Juneau, Alaska - Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was pleased to learn that U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has decided not to change the existing Section 4(d) rule regulations concerning the protection of polar bears under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

This decision will provide for continued monitoring and strong protections for polar bears under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and international treaties. This means that subsistence activities and oil and gas development on the North Slope will not be subject to the consultation requirements of the ESA. Governor Palin and the Alaska congressional delegation argued strongly for retention of the polar bear rule.    » read more »

April 28, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke and Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced that the two departments are revoking an eleventh-hour Bush administration rule that undermined Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections. Their decision requires federal agencies to once again consult with federal wildlife experts at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – the two agencies that administer the ESA – before taking any action that may affect threatened or endangered species.    » read more »

Reversal Signals Renewed Focus on Science at the Heart of Federal Actions

CHICAGO (April 28, 2008) – The Obama administration announced today that they would be dumping eleventh-hour Bush Administration changes to the Endangered Species Act that would have dramatically weakened the landmark wildlife protection law.

The decision will once again require federal agencies to consult with experts at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration before taking action that could impact threatened or endangered species. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and other groups had sued to roll back the Bush Administration changes that have now been repealed.    » read more »

Statement by Francesca Grifo

April 28, 2009 -- Today, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar rescinded eleventh-hour Bush administration changes to Endangered Species Act regulations that allowed federal agencies to decide for themselves if their own projects—such as roads and dams—would threaten imperiled species. Federal agencies again will be required to consult with expert biologists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or National Marine Fisheries Service before undertaking or permitting new projects.

The rule change was just one of several controversial Bush administration actions that undermined the scientific foundation of the Endangered Species Act, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS).    » read more »

Interior and Commerce Secretaries Must Act by May 9

April 27, 2009 -- More than 1,300 federal and independent scientists with biological expertise and three leading scientific societies today called on the Interior and Commerce departments to overturn rule changes made in January that weaken the scientific foundation of the Endangered Species Act.    » read more »

March 6, 2009 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today affirmed the decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to remove gray wolves from the list of threatened and endangered species in the western Great Lakes and the northern Rocky Mountain states of Idaho and Montana and parts of Washington, Oregon and Utah. Wolves will remain a protected species in Wyoming.

“The recovery of the gray wolf throughout significant portions of its historic range is one of the great success stories of the Endangered Species Act,” Salazar said. “When it was listed as endangered in 1974, the wolf had almost disappeared from the continental United States. Today, we have more than 5,500 wolves, including more than 1,600 in the Rockies.”    » read more »

Bush Administration Rule Leads to Wolves Removal from Endangered Species List

CHICAGO (March 6, 2009) – The Secretary of the Interior announced today that he will remove the gray wolf from the federal Endangered Species List in Montana and Idaho, as well as the western Great Lakes region. Wolves in the state of Wyoming will remain under Endangered Species Act protection due to federal concern over the inadequacy of the state’s management plan.

The State of Idaho recently proposed killing 200 wolves within their borders.

Following are comments from Andrew Wetzler, Director of NRDC’s Endangered Species Project:    » read more »

March 3, 2009 -- Washington, DC – President Obama today directed federal agencies to once again consult with independent scientists at the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to determine if their actions might harm threatened and endangered species. This action will limit the damage caused by the midnight Endangered Species Act regulations put in place by the Bush Administration in December 2008.

John Kostyack, Executive Director of Wildlife Conservation and Global Warming at the National Wildlife Federation, said:    » read more »