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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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Federal Court Rejects Trump’s Approval of Offshore Oil-drilling Project in Arctic
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit today rejected the Trump administration’s approval of the first offshore oil-drilling development in federal Arctic waters.
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6 Ways to Take Action on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s 60th Anniversary
In 1960, Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower created the Arctic National Wildlife Range “for the purpose of preserving unique wildlife, wilderness, and recreational values.” Twenty years later, President Jimmy Carter expanded the range and renamed the area as Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
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Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Polar Bears on the Auction Block
The Bureau of Land Management announced today that it will hold an oil and gas lease sale on January 6 for the coastal plain of Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, one of the nation’s premier national wildlife refuges.
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Congress Announces National Strategy to Protect our Nation’s Biodiversity
As a result of human-related activities, the loss of species is accelerating faster than ever before in human history according to scientists. The consequences of
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Emergency Petition Seeks to Protect Endangered North Atlantic Right Whales From Fishing Gear
Conservation and wildlife-protection groups today filed an emergency rulemaking petition to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales from becoming entangled in commercial fishing gear.
jcovey@defenders.org
