Endangered Species Law & Policy

On August 12, 2013, the National Marine Fisheries Service refused to list the alewife herring (Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback herring (Alosa aestivalis), concluding that based on the best scientific and commercial data available, neither species warranted protection under the Endangered Species Act.  The determinationn was in response to a petition submitted by the Natural Resources Defense Council.  The news was not all bad for the herring, however, as the National Marine Fisheries Service also stated that it will be working with the Atlantic States Marines ...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has proposed (pdf) listing the Graham’s beardtongue (Penstemon grahamii) and White River beardtongue (Penstemon scariosus albifluvis) as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act. In addition, the Service has proposed designating a combined 83,000 acres in Uintah County, Utah as critical habitat for the rare plants.

The two beardtongue species are endemic to oil shale soils, and grow mostly on the Mahogany Ledge in northeast Utah, an area rich in oil shale deposits. The Service has cited oil and gas exploration and ...

On August 2, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) proposed (pdf) listing Webber’s ivesia (Ivesia webberi) as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The Service also proposed (pdf) designating approximately 2,011 acres of critical habitat for the species in Plumas, Lassen, and Sierra Counties in northeastern California, and Washoe and Douglas Counties in northwestern Nevada.

Webber’s ivesia is a low, spreading, perennial forb in the rose family with grayish-green foliage, wiry stems, and clusters of small, yellow flowers. The species ...

Yesterday, the National Marine Fisheries Service issued a notice of proposed rule to designate approximately 1,184 square miles of marine habitat in the Puget Sound as critical habitat for the threatened distinct population segment of yelloweye rockfish (Sebastes ruberriums), the threatened distinct population segment of canary rockfish (Sebastes pinniger), and the endangered distinct population segment of bocaccio (Sebastes paucispinus).  The notice states that comments on the proposed rule are due on November 4, 2013, and requests for public hearing must be made in ...

On July 22, 2013, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington held (pdf) that plaintiffs’ claims regarding the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (Service) alleged violation of section 10 of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) were not subject to the 60 day notice of intent to sue (NOI) requirement.

In 1997, the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) adopted a habitat conservation plan to govern logging in the forests of southwest Washington.  The marbled murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus) is one of a number of endangered and threatened species covered ...

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) recently issued a proposed rule (pdf) designating critical habitat for the Northwest Atlantic Ocean loggerhead sea turtle Distinct Population Segment (DPS) (Caretta caretta) within the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. The 36 marine areas proposed for designation as critical habitat contain one or a combination of nearshore reproductive habitat, winter habitat, breeding areas, and migratory corridors.

The loggerhead sea turtle was listed worldwide as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) on July 28 ...

Yesterday, the House Committee on Natural Resources held a second hearing regarding implementation and impacts of the Endangered Species Act.  Today's hearing was titled: Transparency and Sound Science Gone Extinct?: The impacts of the Obama Administration's Closed-Door Settlement on Endangered Species and People.  In a summary description issued before the hearing, the Committee stated that it anticipated the hearing would "highlight how the lack of data transparency is leading to increased numbers of species being listed and critical habitat being ...

On July 23, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed (pdf) a lower court decision upholding restrictions on commercial fishing in Alaska to protect the western Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus), which is listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The measures, imposed in 2010 by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), restrict the mackerel and cod fisheries in the western Aleutian Islands. NMFS determined such restrictions were necessary to ensure an adequate supply of prey for the western DPS of the ...

On July 23, 2013, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) released a final plan to shoot approximately 3,600 barred owls (Strix varia) in the Pacific Northwest in order protect the northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina), which is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

The plan provides that the Service will use shotguns to remove barred owls from four test areas in Washington, Oregon, and California. According to the Service, the barred owl is a threat to the northern spotted owl because it outcompetes the smaller and less aggressive spotted owl for ...

On June 11, 2013, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a guidance memo (pdf) regarding its obligations under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.  The memo focuses on the Corps’ consultation obligations under section 7(a)(2).  Notably, the Corps makes no reference to the Corps’ obligation under section 7(a)(1) to utilize [its] authorities in furtherance of the purposes of this Act by carrying out programs for the conservation of endangered species and threatened species listed pursuant to section 4 of this Act.

Section 7(a)(2) requires a federal action agency such as the ...