Stop the Eleventh-Hour Assault on Endangered Species

As a Defenders of Wildlife supporter and someone who cares deeply about the recovery of endangered wildlife, I am writing to voice my opposition to the Bush/Cheney Administration's eleventh-hour changes to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) regulations that would eliminate vital checks and balances that protect threatened and endangered wildlife.

The proposed changes to the consultation requirements under Section 7 of the ESA, strike at the very heart of this landmark conservation bill, undermining the protection of polar bears, wolves and the nearly 1,400 other wildlife species now safeguarded by the ESA.

These changes would severely limit the ability of wildlife experts in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to protect imperiled wildlife by eliminating crucial interagency consultations on project decisions that may affect endangered or threatened species.

It would also explicitly prevent expert agencies from considering how greenhouse gas emissions from new projects could impact polar bears, lynx and other wildlife that may go extinct due to global warming.

The independent review of experts at USFWS and NMFS is crucial for agencies proposing projects such as highways, dams, mines, oil or gas drilling and virtually any other activity. The proposed regulations would allow for agencies engaging in these activities to decide for themselves regardless of their resources or staff expertise to do so -- whether a project is likely to impact any of the nearly 1,400 species protected by the Endangered Species Act.

Many of these agencies do not even have biologists or other qualified experts to make such determinations on their own.

Even in situations where a federal agency voluntarily chooses to consult with USFWS or NMFS experts, an arbitrary 60-day limit on those consultations is imposed -- otherwise, the project, no matter how harmful to imperiled wildlife, can move forward.

These changes in the rules that govern how the Endangered Species Act works are a cynical, eleventh-hour attempt to undermine this landmark law that currently protects nearly 1,400 species. I urge you to withdraw the proposal.

Thank you for considering my comments and I look forward to your response.