Posts from May 2013
Posted in Listing

On May 28, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a final rule (pdf) listing 35 plants and three tree snails found on the Hawaiian islands of Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Kahoolawe as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The plant species include a variety of flowers, shrubs, and trees from coastal, lowland, subalpine, and cliff environments. The animal species include two Lanai tree snails (Partulina semicarinata and Partulina variabilis) and the Newcomb’s tree snail (Newcombia cumingi). The Service proposed listing the species in July 2012.

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Tags: Listing
Posted in Court Decisions

On March 29, 2013, after more than 11 years of litigation, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia held that a defendant, as the prevailing party, was entitled to attorneys' fees under the Endangered Species Act's fee shifting provision.  See Animal Welfare Institute v. Feld Entertainment, Inc., No. 03-2006 (D.D.C. Mar. 29, 2013) (pdf).

The fee provision states, in relevant part, "in issuing any final order in any suit brought" under the citizen suit provision of the Endangered Species Act, a court, in its discretion, "may award costs of ...

Posted in Delisting

On May 15, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) removed (pdf) the Magazine Mountain shagreen (Inflectarius magazinensis) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife. The Service determined that the threats to the species have been eliminated or reduced to the point that the species has recovered and no longer meets the definition of threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The Magazine Mountain shagreen is a medium-sized, dusky brown or sand-colored snail found on Mount Magazine in western Arkansas. The snail was first listed ...

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Tags: Delisting

House Republicans recently announced the creation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Working Group, which will be led by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA) and Western Caucus Co-Chair Cynthia Lummis (R-WY).  The ESA Working Group will include a total of 13 republican members from a broad geographic range.  It will examine the ESA from many angles through a series of events, forums, and hearings that will invite discussion and input on ways in which the ESA is working well, and where it can be updated or improved to increase its effectiveness for both people ...

Posted in Legislation

The State of Idaho enacted a law (pdf) this spring asserting that the State has primacy over the management of fish and wildlife. The law was introduced as Senate Bill 1061 and signed into law by Governor Butch Otter on March 22, 2013. In addition, the law states that introduction or reintroduction of any federally listed species onto lands within the state or into state waters, including those actions that would impair or impede the state's primacy over its land and water, without state consultation and approval is against the policy of the state of Idaho. The law plainly is intended to ...

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for registering pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). As part of this process, the EPA must ensure that the use of the pesticide will not cause any unreasonable adverse effects on the environment, including species protected under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and designated critical habitat for such species. Often, in order to comply with the ESA, the EPA must consult with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to ...

Posted in Listing

On May 6, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposed (pdf) a limited exception to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections currently being considered for the lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus). The special rule is proposed pursuant to section 4(d) of the ESA, and would allow take of lesser prairie-chickens as long as such take is incidental to activities performed under a conservation plan that the Service has determined will provide a net benefit to the species.

The lesser prairie chicken is a small, grayish-brown grouse that inhabits ...

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Tags: Listing

In Klamath Siskyou Wildlands Center v. MacWhorter, 1:12-cv-1900 (pdf), the United States District Court for the District of Oregon granted a motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ suit alleging that the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by allowing suction dredge placer mining in the Rogue River-Siskyou National Forest without consulting with federal wildlife agencies about potential effects on coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) and coho salmon critical habitat.  In dismissing the case, the court held that it lacked subject matter jurisdiction ...

On April 25, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) published a proposed rule (pdf) to list the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog (Rana sierrae) as endangered, the northern distinct population segment (DPS) of the mountain yellow-legged frog (Rana muscosa) as endangered, and the Yosemite toad (Anaxyrus canorus) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

According to the Service, populations of the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog and the northern DPS of the mountain yellow-legged frog are declining due to habitat degradation and fragmentation ...

The southwestern United States faces a host of challenges as a result of climate change including strained water resources, greater prevalence of tree-killing pests, and potentially significant alterations of agricultural infrastructure. A hotter future is projected for the Southwest—a region stretching from the California coast to the plains of eastern Colorado and New Mexico—and future heat and changes in precipitation will present challenges for managing natural resources, water, infrastructure, and threats to human health. Climate change is already ...

Posted in Court Decisions

In Center for Biological Diversity v. Environmental Protection Agency, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed with leave to amend (pdf) a suit alleging that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) violated section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by failing to consult with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service or the National Marine Fisheries Service on the effects of 382 registered pesticides on endangered and threatened species.

The court dismissed the case, holding that plaintiffs failed to allege specific facts ...

Nossaman’s Endangered Species Law & Policy blog focuses on news, events, and policies affecting endangered species issues in California and throughout the United States. Topics include listing and critical habitat decisions, conservation and recovery planning, inter-agency consultation, and related developments in law, policy, and science. We also inform readers about regulatory and legislative developments, as well as key court decisions.

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