It's Time to Reform the Endangered Species Act

It's Time to Reform the Endangered Species Act

In 1973, Congress passed the Endangered Species Act. The Act was passed in response to findings by Congress that growth and development were responsible for the extinction of species of fish, wildlife and plants.

This Act was to provide programs to protect species identified as either endangered or threatened. It also mandated Federal agencies and departments to protect endangered and threatened species in their own operations, as well as work with State and local agencies to further promote conservation and protection of identified species.

By the definition of the Endangered Species Act, a species covered by the legislation is either classified “Endangered” if threatened with extinction, or “Threatened” if in a state of decline that might place it on the endangered list.

As of 23 March 2003, 1262 species of plants and animals were listed as endangered or threatened by the Endangered Species Act, with thirty-three species proposed for listing. To date, twenty-six species have been removed from the list, either due to recovery or the discovery of new information about their status, while seven were removed due to becoming extinct.

THIRTY YEARS LATER: NEW LOOKS AT THE SUCCESS OF THE ACT

There are concerns about the Endangered Species Act upon business, industry, and property owners, as well as Wildlife groups, about the effectiveness of the Act in protecting and restoring listed species.

A report from the Ecological Society of America entitled “Strengthening the Use of Science in Achieving the Goals of the Endangered Species Act”, calls upon the Federal government to adopt a more-proactive approach in species preservation. They note that by the time a species...

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... important. But anything worth doing is worth doing right. The Act should be reformed in a manner which will increase cooperation by all interested parties, and in doing so, help us reach the ultimate objective of the Endangered Species Act.

SOURCES:

Ecological Society of America, The. “Strengthening the Use of Science in Achieving the Goals of the Endangered Species Act” http://www.esa.org/publications/esarpt.htm

National Endangered Species Act Reform Coalition http://www.nesarc.org/

National Wildlife Institute. “Conservation Under the Endangered Species Act: A Promise Broken” http://www.nwi.org/SpecialStudies/ESAstudy.html

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. “Endangered Species Information” U.S. Fish http://endangered.fws.gov/wildlife.html

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. “The Endangered Species Act of 1973” http://endangered.few.gov/esa.html