US: Trump administration weakens Endangered Species Act

The US government is set to overhaul the Endangered Species Act (ESA), according to a new memo signed by Brian Nesvik, the director of the Interior Department's Fish and Wildlife Service. This policy shift, as reported by The New York Times and confirmed to AFP, reduces the definition of "take," a term relating to pursuing, killing or capturing a species, to simply "affirmative conduct intentionally directed against a particular animal or animals."

This change would no longer consider the unintentional killing of protected wildlife as unlawful, exempting wildlife deaths from foreseeable risks posed by activities such as commercial fishing or logging from the landmark 1973 law. The Interior Department confirmed the memo's authenticity to AFP, stating that it accurately reflects the agency's guidance for implementing the ESA following the rescission of the regulatory definition of "harm."

The changes, which include the redefinition of "harm," would allow activities like oil drilling and mining in endangered habitats, provided these activities do not directly kill or injure the animals. Additionally, the automatic application of endangered species protections to species listed as "threatened" has been halted. These changes, among others, overturn five decades of precedent in how the law is interpreted and applied, according to Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, who argues that the ESA has been "weaponized" to hinder economic projects, weaken competitiveness, and undermine national security.

The move has been met with criticism, with the attorneys general of 20 Democratic-led states, along with Washington, DC, filing a lawsuit against the administration over its overhaul of the ESA, alleging that it undermines the will of Congress and the people who support protections for endangered species.