How the Endangered Species Act Works
| Total U.S. Endangered Species 993 (394 animals, 599 plants) Total U.S. Threatened Species 275 (129 animals, 146 plants) Total U.S. Listed Species 1268 (523 animals, 745 plants) |
Purpose:The Endangered Species Act (“ESA”), signed into law by President Nixon in 1973, is a safety net for wildlife -- animal, plants, and fish that are on the brink of extinction. It seeks to conserve endangered and threatened species and the ecosystems on which they depend.
Threatened & Endangered : To receive any protections under the Endangered Species Act, wildlife species must be placed on the ESA list as either "Endangered" or "Threatened."
ESA = Strong Protections:
1. Restrictions on “taking” listed species (e.g., killing or harassing them).
2. Protection of habitat “critical” for conservation of the listed species (e.g., the areas endangered and threatened species need for shelter, food, rest, and breeding). Every species needs a home. Scientists tell us over and over that for a species to recover, it needs an adequate place to live.
3. All federal agencies must consult with federal wildlife biologists if projects of the agencies may affect endangered or threatened species.
Flexibility Available:
1. In certain circumstances, special permits and plans allow endangered or threatened species to be “taken” (including damaging key habitat). The “taking” must be incidental and accompanied by a plan to mitigate and minimize impacts. Also, the “taking” cannot “appreciably reduce the likelihood of the survival and recovery of the species in the wild.”
2. Federal agencies’ projects almost always are allowed to proceed, but sometimes with key modifications that protect the species while the projects continue.
3. “Critical habitat” protections only affect federal activities or funding.
Recovery:
1. The Endangered Species Act has prevented the extinction of many species, stabilized them, and started them toward recovery.
2. Recovery Plans, prepared by teams that include knowledgeable scientists, outline the steps necessary for bringing species to the point they no longer need the Endangered Species Act’s protections.
Attempts to Weaken this Landmark Wildlife Protection Law :
In 2005, some members of Congress have engaged in legislative efforts that seriously erode all the strong ESA protections noted above: if approved, these efforts will decrease listings, hamper scientific input, take away habitat protections, discourage federal agencies to consult with federal wildlife biologists, and so on. In September, the U.S. House passed a bill, H.R. 3824, that significantly weakens most parts of the Endangered Species Act. The U.S. Senate has not yet voted on ESA legislation.
Endangered Species: Sobering Extinction Numbers
“The rapid loss of species that we are witnessing today is estimated by some experts to be between 100 and 1,000 times higher than the ‘background’ or expected natural extinction rate (this is a highly conservative estimate: some studies estimate current extinction rates as 1,000-11,000 times background rates). Unlike the mass-extinction events of geological history, the current extinction phenomenon is one for which a single species-ours-appears to be almost wholly responsible. Such a deteriorating situation is being referred to as ‘the sixth extinction crisis’. . . . The 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species tells us that the global extinction crisis is as bad, or worse, than we believed. A total of 15,589 species of plants and animals are known to face a high risk of extinction in the near future, in almost all cases as a result of human activities. This includes 32% (one in three) of amphibian species, 24% (one in four) of mammal species, 12% (one in eight) of bird species, 25% (one in four) of conifers and 52% of cycads (an ancient group of plants).” World Conservation Union, Species Extinction (2004) (Sept. 14, 2005). (The World Conservation Union includes 10,000 scientists and experts from 181 countries.)
“Can you guess how many species have become extinct in North America since the Pilgrims landed in 1620? Scientists estimate that the natural extinction rate is approximately 1 species lost in every 100 years. Yet, more than 500 species in North America have disappeared in less than 400 years.” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Sept. 14, 2005).
Endangered Species: Vital for Human Well-Being
“All living things are connected to each other, including humans. It is like a web. We are quickly learning that when we remove anything in nature, something else is affected. It has been estimated that a disappearing plant can take with it up to 30 other species, including insects, higher animals and other plants. Plants and animals hold medicinal, agricultural, ecological, commercial, and aesthetic/recreational value. Endangered species must be protected and saved so that future generations can experience their presence and value.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, MAIA (Sept. 14, 2005).
Endangered Species Act:
Important for Protection of Endangered Species
“Recovery is on the horizon for many species on the list. Ninety-seven percent of U.S. listed species as of September 30, 2002 , still survive and many of them are headed toward recovery. In fact, the Service considers over 500 listed species to be stable or improving in status. By any measure, this is a tremendous success .” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Endangered Species Bulletin, Species on the Brink of Recovery (July/December 2003) (Sept. 14, 2005).
“[W]e can adopt a few simplifying assumptions to predict how many species ought to have gone extinct between the inception of the ESA in 1973 and 1998. . . . [O]ne expects that during the past 25 years . . . 192 [Endangered Species Act] listed species should have gone extinct. . . . [Thus] seven observed extinctions represents a significant benchmark of success of the ESA.” Schwartz, Choosing the Appropriate Scale of Reserves for Conservation, Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 30:83-108, 87 (1999) (Sept. 14, 2005).