The Endangered Species Act is one of our most powerful tools for combating extinction and promoting species recovery.
First passed in 1973, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has helped protect thousands of species from extinction and other threats over its more than 50 years of enforcement. The act is so effective that over 99% of species ever listed by it have avoided extinction.
However, the once broadly supported, bipartisan bill could soon face fundamental changes that threaten to weaken the efficacy and scope of the act. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service have proposed a regulatory change that could undermine decades of work and put the future of hundreds of species in jeopardy.
Imagine if you came home one day and somebody had demolished your house and paved over your yard. Yet the perpetrator claimed that because they didn’t strike you directly, they can’t be held accountable for causing you harm.
That’s analogous to the situation that endangered animals may soon be facing.
The regulatory change under consideration would weaken the definition of “harm” in the ESA, which under the current interpretation includes any action that would damage habitat and impair usual animal behavior.
Under the new interpretation, threats to endangered and protected species, including pollution, habitat destruction and fragmentation, would now be both legal and possible as long as they don’t directly harm the physical animal itself.
This could mean birds with nothing but stumps in which to build their nest, deer with nothing but concrete left to graze, or fish with nothing but toxic water left to absorb, would all be considered just fine.
Unlike with some government policies, the consequences of the ESA are visible to anybody who cares to look. The ESA protects real species, species you can observe and admire, in real habitats, habitats you can explore and cherish.
In order to showcase the importance of these special places, and the many fascinating animals and ecosystems they protect, we will be looking at a few unique and threatened species and the habitats they call home.
Read more on Inside The Star-Studded World
