Per the Trump administration, the law is only broken if endangered animals were intentionally killed
The US administration’s new interpretation of the Endangered Species Act allows the killing of endangered animals if they were not intentionally harmed, reported The Associated Press.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service director Brian Nesvik issued a directive to employees with the instruction on September 14 in line with a new rule implemented by the wildlife service in July. The directive defined the “taking” of species.
“Under the guidance, the ESA’s prohibition on ‘take’ continues to prohibit conduct including harassing, pursuing, hunting, shooting, wounding, killing, trapping, capturing or collecting protected wildlife,” said officials from the Interior Department in a September 17 statement, a snippet of which was published by AP News.
It marks a departure from the law’s typical reading, which holds that harming a protected species even accidentally would make one liable. The administration said it was reverting to the Act’s original intent after the Supreme Court ruled in 2024 to restrict federal agencies’ authority to interpret Congress-passed environmental statutes.
According to experts, this new ESA interpretation permits timber companies to log forests even if it would kill endangered birds. Developers may also construct dams despite the danger to the salmon population.
Environmentalists said that narrowing the definition of “harm” to exclude indirect acts against endangered species would accelerate extinction and lead to habitat destruction.
Previously, companies and individuals had to obtain permits for certain incidental killings. The new read on ESA means only those directly targeting endangered animals – such as hunters, trappers, anglers and maybe pesticide users – would require permits, according to attorney Sandi Snodgrass, who practises with Denver-based Holland and Hart.
Snodgrass added that companies may ask for permits to shield themselves from citizen lawsuits or future reforms by other administrations.
Association of Zoos and Aquariums president Dan Ashe, who led the Fish and Wildlife Service while Barack Obama was in power, said in a statement published by AP News that the interpretation “cuts against the entire history of the Endangered Species Act.”
“It just creates a huge loophole. It completely relieves people of any responsibility for their actions, even consequences that can be easily predicted,” Ashe said.
The ESA has been responsible for saving animals like the bald eagle, American alligator, and California condor from extinction.
