Courtney Bourgoin, courtney.bourgoin@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC— Today, the Biden administration took several actions to undo the previous administration’s gutting of the Endangered Species Act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA announced the agencies would begin the process to:
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Rescind regulations that revised Fish and Wildlife Service’s process for considering exclusions from critical habitat designations: This would scrap changes by the Trump administration that gave industry undue influence over USFWS’ weighing of the benefits of designating an area as critical habitat.
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Rescind regulatory definition of habitat: Would scrap the Trump administration rule that unlawfully defined the term “habitat” to exclude locations from Endangered Species Act protections even if they will become habitat in the future, or could be restored to become suitable habitat.
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Revise regulations for listing species and designating critical habitat: Would undo the Trump administration’s unlawful attempt to allow economic considerations to improperly influence listing decisions
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Revise regulations for interagency cooperation: Will propose changes to Trump regulations that improperly limited the analysis of impacts of federal agency actions on ESA listed species and critical habitat during ESA consultations.
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Reinstate protections for species listed as threatened under ESA: FWS will propose to reinstate its “blanket 4(d) rule,” which extends protections provided to endangered species to those listed as threatened.
Read more about the announcement and rule changes here.
In response to the announcement, Kirin Kennedy, Deputy Legislative Director at the Sierra Club, released the following statement:
“We are thrilled the Biden administration is moving in the direction of reinstating and fully enforcing protections under the Endangered Species Act— one of our most effective tools in slowing the extinction crisis. We need the administration to correct all of the unlawful changes made under the Trump administration, and to do so urgently.
“The Endangered Species Act is overwhelmingly supported and effective— stopping 99% of species listed from going extinct. The Trump administration attempted to undermine its efficacy by making it harder for federal agencies to list species, protect habitat, and take the action necessary to slow extinction.
“Right now, the Biden administration must move urgently to completely undo the attacks on this bedrock law carried out under Trump. Doing so will move us closer to the sustainable and just solutions necessary to stop the climate crisis, slow mass extinction, and damage to our public lands, water and habitat.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.