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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.
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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.
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Construction on Gateway to Road through Izembek Continues
The Ninth Circuit today denied Defenders of Wildlife’s emergency motion to halt construction on King Cove Corp.’s 2.8-mile road segment leading to the doorstep of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge and Wilderness. Defenders’ request for immediate injunctive relief marks the latest stage in its larger effort to block a damaging and precedent-setting road from King Cove to Cold Bay, Alaska, that would plow through the heart of Izembek.
Press Releases
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Interior Finalizes Habitat Definition, Further Undermines the Endangered Species Act
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finalized a rule today that defines habitat under the Endangered Species Act and allows the government to deny critical habitat protections for endangered plants and animals—a change that could open lands and waterways to more energy development and other activities.
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10 Bison Arrive in Southeastern Colorado, Marking Start of New Conservation Herd
Last Friday, Southern Plains Land Trust (SPLT), Colorado State University (CSU) and Defenders of Wildlife successfully completed the week-long transfer of 10 bison, marking the beginning of a new conservation herd at SPLT’s Heartland Ranch Nature Preserve in southeastern Colorado. After an adjustment period, the bison will be released into their larger pasture.
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Conservation Groups Sue Feds Over Failure to Protect Wolverines
A coalition of conservation groups filed a lawsuit today challenging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to withhold Endangered Species Act protection from wolverines in the lower 48 states, where no more than 300 wolverines remain. Without the new conservation efforts that would be triggered by the Endangered Species Act listing, wolverines face localized extinction as a result of climate change, habitat fragmentation and low genetic diversity.
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Congress Rejects Legislation that Threatens Desert Refuge
Today’s passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) by the U.S. Senate is an important victory for Desert National Wildlife Refuge and the integrity
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Satellite Images to Reveal Untold Habitat Loss
Protecting and restoring habitat is becoming more critical than ever as the Earth faces unprecedented biodiversity loss. Government authorities, environmental watchdogs, and the public need
jcovey@defenders.org
