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Defenders Expands Legal Challenge to Trump Administration’s Assault on Endangered Species Act
Defenders of Wildlife today filed an amended complaint challenging the Trump administration’s escalating effort to dismantle longstanding protections for threatened and endangered wildlife under the Endangered Species Act.
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NPS Land Swaps and Visitor Plan Open the Door to Devastating Impacts at Cumberland Island
In advance of a public hearing on proposed land exchanges on Cumberland Island National Seashore, Defenders of Wildlife called on the National Park Service to remedy a host of management issues facing one of the largest undeveloped barrier islands on the East Coast.
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U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Memo Underscores Trump Administration’s All-Fronts War on Wildlife
Brian Nesvik, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, issued a memorandum explaining to FWS staff that the Endangered Species Act’s prohibition on unauthorized “take” applies only to affirmative acts intentionally and purposefully directed at a particular animal. This follows the Trump administration’s rescission of the regulatory definitions of “harm” under the ESA, which took effect this week.
Press Releases
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Defenders Supports New Bill Expanding Investments in Soil Health and Wildlife Habitat on Private Land
Defenders of Wildlife today announced its support for H.R. 8754 introduced by Rep. Julia Brownley (D-CA). If passed, the Saving Our Interconnected Lives (SOIL) Act will amend the Farm Bill to encourage agricultural producers to voluntarily conserve soil and wildlife habitat on their land by prioritizing applications for projects that would address both concerns under the Department of Agriculture’s Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) and the Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP).
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Defenders Opposes “Breathtakingly Awful” Attempt to Gut Endangered Species Act with Appalling Rewrite
Defenders of Wildlife opposes one of the worst-ever attempts to gut the Endangered Species Act, the “ESA Amendments Act of 2024.” Sponsored by Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee, the draft bill being heard today in the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries demolishes many of the core tenets of the landmark conservation bill, warps its foundational reliance on best available science and increases the potential for political interference.
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Right Whale Vessel Strike Protections Sought by Nov. 1
Conservation groups this week asked a federal judge to set a Nov. 1 deadline for long-delayed federal action to finalize expanded vessel strike protections for
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National Park Service Restores Protection for Predators in Alaska National Preserves
The National Park Service released new regulations that restore protections for predators on national preserves in Alaska. This is a reversal of a Trump administration
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Defenders Statement on ‘Hatchet Job’ House Interior Appropriations Bill
The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations’ Interior and Environment Subcommittee today released its appropriations bill for the upcoming fiscal year. The bill is riddled with an immense number of riders that severely undermine the lifesaving protections of the Endangered Species Act. It also rolls back key advances made during the Biden administration towards addressing the biodiversity and climate crises.
jcovey@defenders.org
