Trump's Attack on the Endangered Species Act Will Hurt More Than Just Wildlife

"For more than 50 years, the Endangered Species Act has saved thousands of animals and plants from threats like poaching, habitat loss, and pollution. It brought bald eagles back from the brink of extinction, reestablished grizzly bear populations on public lands, and safeguarded the redwood forests that play host to dozens of vulnerable animals. In total, it has prevented the extinction of 99 percent of the species it has protected."

"Last week, President Donald Trump announced that his administration is weakening or eliminating key provisions of the bedrock environmental law that protect vulnerable species from extractive activities like oil drilling. This isn't the first time Trump has gutted the Endangered Species Act, or ESA. Back in 2019, his administration changed the act to make it easier to remove a species from the list, and to allow economic factors to be considered when determining whether to list a new species."

"The proposed changes would also limit federal agencies' ability to consider potential future impacts on a species - such as the impacts of climate change - when deciding which species to list. In addition, the so-called blanket rule, which bestows species listed as threatened with the same protections as those listed as endangered, would be canceled. ("Endangered" means a species is in danger of extinction, while "threatened" means it's likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future.)"

The Endangered Species Act has protected thousands of animals and plants for over 50 years, preventing the extinction of 99 percent of listed species. The Trump administration announced rollbacks that would weaken or eliminate key ESA provisions that shield vulnerable species from extractive activities like oil drilling. Previous 2019 changes made delisting easier and allowed economic considerations for listings; many of those were reversed during the Biden presidency but may be reinstated. Proposed revisions would limit consideration of future harms such as climate change and cancel the blanket rule that extends endangered-level protections to threatened species.

Read at Truthout