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Salt Marsh - Cumberland Island
ST. MARYS, GEORGIA

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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2019.08.07 - Florida Panther looking straight at camera - MS 45 - fStop Foundation
WASHINGTON, D.C.

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.
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A close up of the face of a Sierra Nevada Red Fox at the edge of a forest in Deschutes County, Oregon.
Washington, D.C.

Court Rules Habitat Must Be Protected After FWS Attempts to Waive Protections for Less Than 40 Sierra Nevada Red Fox

Defenders of Wildlife earned a significant victory for the Endangered Species Act today when a federal district court found that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's decision to not designate critical habitat for the endangered Sierra Nevada red fox was a violation of the law.

Press Releases

Trump Administration Exploits Wildfires to Push Environmental Waivers, Destroy Forest Safeguards

Yesterday, Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke published an opinion article on CNN.com with a call to Congress to leverage the Farm Bill to reopen a

Trump Administration Tries to Bury Climate Change Assessment

The Trump administration released today the Fourth National Climate Assessment, measuring the impact of climate change on the U.S. and its territories. The federal government

Trump Administration Ignores Science, Pushes More Logging, Environmental Rollbacks

Today, Interior Secretary Zinke and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, held a briefing call on recent wildfires and forest management. They discussed the Trump administration’s

Orca Task Force Final Recommendations Good, Not Bold

Governor Jay Inslee’s emergency Orca Task Force released its final recommendations today. The recommendations include an increased commitment to funding salmon habitat restoration, increasing water

Last-Ditch Congressional Attack on Wolves Heads for Floor Vote

The House of Representatives will be holding a last-ditch vote to undermine the Endangered Species Act by stripping protections from most gray wolves across the
Senior Vice President, External Affairs
lsheehan@defenders.org
(202) 772-3244
Communications Director
mdewane@defenders.org
(202) 772-0217
Communications Specialist
jcovey@defenders.org
Communications Specialist
kirby@defenders.org
(202) 772-3268
Communications Specialist
estern@defenders.org
202-772-0243