NEWS ABOUT: Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act stories: 15 news briefs
Another midnight ruling refuses protection to threatened animals
San Francisco Chronicle Dec 12, 08 9:59 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
The White House incensed environmental groups yesterday by announcing sweeping changes to the Endangered Species Act, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Federal agencies will no longer have to consult with scientists before approving potentially harmful building or logging projects, and the government will not recognize the threat that global warming poses to species such as polar bears and walruses.
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Invasion of aggressive Eastern owl threatens controversial bird
Seattle Times Aug 14, 08 3:01 AM CDT
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The outlook appears bleak for America's most controversial bird, reports the Seattle Times . Despite logging bans in huge swathes of old-growth forests initiated 14 years ago to protect the northern spotted owl, researchers have discovered its numbers have dropped by nearly half. The decline is blamed on pre-1994 habitat loss and the invasion of a tougher owl species.
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Feds can dodge review under rule changes
Oregonian (Portland) Aug 12, 08 3:21 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Critics are raising an alarm over planned White House changes to the Endangered Species Act, reports the Oregonian . The modifications would give federal agencies such as the US Forest Service more leeway to decide whether activities such as logging would harm endangered species—and such determinations would no longer be scrutinized by outside reviewers.
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They're just fine, governor insists
CBC (Canada) May 22, 08 8:51 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
The state of Alaska will sue to challenge the federal government's decision to place polar bears on the endangered species list, reports CBC News. The Department of the Interior cited the bears' diminishing sea ice habitat as a reason for listing them as threatened, but Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin fears offshore shore oil and gas exploration will be inhibited by safeguards for the bears.
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First species to be listed as endangered by global warming
Associated Press May 14, 08 2:39 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
After 15 months of deliberation, the Interior Department will declare polar bears “threatened” under the Endangered Species Act, officials told the AP today. The decision will reportedly cite internal scientific studies which project that melting Arctic ice could nearly wipe out the animals by 2050.
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ANALYSIS
GOP candidate trumpets interest in climate change, but votes can be 'erratic'
Washington Post May 12, 08 2:29 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
John McCain might trumpet his climate-change bona fides—and voters might be giving him credit—but the Republican candidate's true green colors are far more mixed, the Washington Post finds in a look at how he treats environmental issues. McCain wants a federal limit on greenhouse-gas emissions, but voted against higher fuel-efficiency standards and requiring public utilities to boost output from renewable sources.
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Green groups hail decision giving feds deadline under endangered species act
Los Angeles Times Apr 29, 08 4:03 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
A federal judge today ordered the US government to decide by May 15 if polar bears are endangered, the Los Angeles Times reports, a victory for environmental groups. The judge ruled the feds broke the law by missing the original Jan. 9 deadline; the government offered "no specific facts that would justify the existing delay, much less further delay," the judge said.
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Animal no longer under federal protection in northern Rockies
Associated Press Mar 29, 08 9:35 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Hunters in the northern Rockies will soon take aim at a rare target—the gray wolf. The animal lost its protected species status in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming yesterday, and wildlife agencies in the region are looking to reduce the population by granting hunting licenses for the first time since 1973. An estimated 1,500 gray wolves now roam the region.
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Feds delay decision due within 1 year
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner Mar 21, 08 2:50 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
Three months after the deadline for declaring whether polar bears are a threatened species, the Interior Department hasn't issued a ruling, and Barbara Boxer wants to know why. The influential senator said yesterday she wants Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to appear before the environment committee and “answer questions about the administration’s continued foot-dragging,” the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports.
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Wildlife groups say it's too soon to remove animals from endangered list
National Geographic Feb 22, 08 5:06 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
The gray wolf has been taken off the endangered species list in a multi-state area of the northern Rocky Mountains, National Geographic reports. "The wolves are back," said an official of the Department of the Interior. Just 66 of the animals were reintroduced to the region in 1996 and there are over 1,500 today. Environmental groups say it's too soon to take away the wolves' protection and believe many will soon be killed by hunters.
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Move would make species first official victim of global warming
Los Angeles Times Feb 3, 08 7:13 AM CST
(Newser Summary) -
The US Department of the Interior is expected this week to change the polar bear's conservation status from "vulnerable" to "endangered"—which would make the animals the first species officially recognized as victims of global warming. The year-old proposal concerning the appealing predators would give conservationists a better chance at combating greenhouse gas emissions, reports the Los Angeles Times.
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As ice caps melt, trophy hunters take aim, polar bears belong on endangered list
Independent (UK) Sep 9, 07 3:09 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
It's bad enough when 40% of your habitat will disappear by mid-century, but add trophy hunters taking advantage of a loophole in US law, and it's not a good time to be a polar bear, the Independent on Sunday reports. The bears are not listed as endangered so 950 pelts have been imported from Canada since 1994.
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Endangered Species Act hurts animals, industry
Economist Sep 9, 07 5:16 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
The Endangered Species Act , enacted in 1973 to protect the likes of the bald eagle and the California grizzly, is in desperate need of overhaul, the Economist argues. The act’s latest ravagement is the protection of the delta smelt, a three-inch fish a judge deemed important enough late last month to warrant shutting down giant pumps that supply two-thirds of California's water supply.
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Steward of endangered species suffers government neglect
Los Angeles Times Jul 5, 07 12:55 PM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
The bald eagle's exit from Endangered Species Act protection drew attention away from the watchdog agency that defends threatened species—and is in peril itself. The budget has been slashed, open jobs go unfilled, and the fate of hundreds of plant and animal species hangs in the balance. The LA Times looks at the troubled Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Internal memo
reveals plan to
reduce protection
Salon Mar 27, 07 7:41 AM CDT
(Newser Summary) -
The Bush administration is quietly rewriting the rules on enforcing the Endangered Species Act, drafting changes that some environmentalists say will fatally weaken protections for threatened wildlife. A 117-page internal proposal obtained by Salon would limit which animals could be effectively protected, cut back on the size of habitats preserved, and shift enforcement from the federal government to the states.
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