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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Trump administration is finalizing two new regulations that will undermine the implementation of federal protections for wildlife under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the nation’s cornerstone conservation law. One rule rescinds the longstanding blanket 4(d) rule, ending the practice of automatically extending key ESA protections from killing, injury, and harassment to newly listed “threatened” species. A second rule aims to impede designation of critical habitat by curbing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s discretion regarding when to exclude areas from protection based on non-biological factors like economic considerations.
The decision follows another recently finalized decision by the Trump administration to rescind the regulatory definition of “harm” under the ESA, as well as recent actions proposing to weaken protections for grizzly bears and finalize substantial cuts to designated critical habitat for the Canada lynx. Taken together, the moves aim to reduce protections for imperiled plants and animals and make it easier to prioritize development over the conservation measures that have safeguarded America’s wildlife for more than 50 years.
