{
  "id": 8107407,
  "title": "Trump officials move to dismantle key protection for US endangered species",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/trump-officials-move-to-dismantle-key-protection-for-us-endangered",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-17T21:28:15.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Guardian US",
    "slug": "the-guardian-us",
    "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/sep/17/endangered-species-trump-officials"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "The US Fish and Wildlife Service has reinterpreted a key part of the 1973 Endangered Species Act (ESA). A September 14 memo, distributed to field offices, redefines what it means to \"take\" an endangered species. According to The Guardian US, \"take\" is originally defined as \"to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct\".\n\nUnder the new interpretation, unintentional killing of protected wildlife will no longer be considered unlawful. Phys.org reports that deaths resulting from foreseeable risks posed by activities such as commercial fishing or logging will be exempt from the law. Conservationists say this effectively guts the ESA.\n\nThe change means that only intentional actions against a particular animal or animals will be considered \"taking\" an endangered species. According to Phys.org, this shift was confirmed by the Trump administration and first reported by The New York Times, and has been criticised by conservationists, with Gib Brogan of Oceana Fisheries saying it will \"cut the heart out of the Endangered Species Act\".",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "CityNews",
        "title": "Killing endangered wildlife is legal if they aren’t the target, new Trump rule says",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/killing-endangered-wildlife-is-legal-if-they-arent-the-target-new",
        "published": "2026-09-17T20:53:17.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Phys.org",
        "title": "Trump administration overhauls key protection for endangered species",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/17/trump-administration-overhauls-key-protection-for-endangered-species",
        "published": "2026-09-17T21:40:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}