US Administration moves to restore endangered species act butchered by Bush

30/04/2009 11:49:32 April 2009. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke have announced that the Obama administration will reverse an Endangered Species Act (ESA) regulation finalized in the final months of the Bush administration. The rule removed the long-standing requirement under Section 7 of the ESA for federal agencies to consult with experts at FWS and NMFS in cases where their actions may impact endangered species. Instead, it permitted each agency to decide on its own whether or not to consult.

"We are gratified Secretary Salazar and Secretary Locke acted to restore the Endangered Species Act to its intended strength," said Darin Schroeder, Vice President for Conservation Advocacy at American Bird Conservancy. "The consultation process is one of the cornerstones of the ESA, and one of the key checks and balances that ensures protection for the 90 birds and 1,263 other animals and plants it covers."

Unnecessary work and effort
Congress granted the administration the authority in the recent omnibus appropriations bill to fast-track the reversal of the regulations. A coalition of Chief Executive Officers of national environmental groups, including American Bird Conservancy President George Fenwick, had called on Secretary Salazar to reverse the ESA regulation.

Threat to Spotted owl
"The Western Oregon Plan Revisions, a plan to increase logging of mature and old growth forests in Oregon, is an example of why ESA consultation is so important," said Schroeder. "The plan, which was approved without consulting with wildlife experts, reduces habitat protection for dwindling salmon stocks and increases take of the threatened Northern Spotted Owl and Marbled Murrelet including the elimination of an estimated 680 Spotted Owl sites over the course of its implementation. It should be withdrawn so that consultation can take place."

At a celebration in March honouring the 160th anniversary of the creation of the Department of the Interior, President Obama announced his intention to "...restore the scientific process to its rightful place at the heart of the Endangered Species Act; a process undermined by past administrations." He went on to say, "For more than three decades, the Endangered Species Act has successfully protected our nation's most threatened wildlife, and we should be looking for ways to improve it, not weaken it."

Soon after this speech, the President released a memorandum requesting that the Secretaries of Interior and Commerce determine whether to issue a new rule that would restore the consultation requirements of the ESA. Until such time, he requested that all agency heads use their discretion and follow the prior long-standing consultation process.