Trump Moves to Roll Back Endangered Species Act

The Trump administration on Wednesday unveiled a plan to scale back the Endangered Species Act with four proposed rule changes, including one that would make it harder to list species due to threats like climate change. The proposed rules, announced by the Interior Department, are part of a broader push to reduce federal regulations and boost fossil fuel development—activities that often overlap with habitats of at-risk species. Another proposed rule would end blanket protections for "threatened" species, which currently receive nearly the same safeguards as those officially listed as endangered, per the Washington Post. Instead, protections would be tailored to each species, a shift critics say could leave more plants and animals vulnerable.

Defenders of Wildlife attorney Jane Davenport notes protecting threatened species is like "treating the patient when they're in the emergency room as opposed to in the intensive care unit, when it's just much harder to recover them," per the Post. The changes would also allow officials to report on the potential economic impacts of protecting a species, even though the Endangered Species Act bars such considerations from influencing listing decisions. Supporters, including Rep. Bruce Westerman, an Arkansas Republican, argue the revisions will make endangered species decisions more responsive to "local environmental and economic conditions." Environmental groups, however, warn the changes could accelerate the decline of species at a time when many are at risk of disappearing forever.

Stephanie Kurose of the Center for Biological Diversity calls the proposal "a death sentence for wolverines, monarch butterflies, Florida manatees and so many other animals and plants," per the Guardian. "Most people are not going to allow the sacrifice of our natural world to a bunch of billionaires and corporate interests," adds Earthjustice attorney Kristen Boyles, per CNN. The Trump administration previously proposed changing the definition of what it means to "harm" a species under the law so as to exclude the destruction of habitat. The public will have 30 days from Friday to comment on the latest proposals as activists prepare for a potential legal fight.