Biden administration plans roll backs of Trump-era Endangered Species Act rules
The Biden administration will formally introduce regulatory proposals to rescind changes the Trump administration made to how agencies interpret parts of the Endangered Species Act, according to documents scheduled to be filed in the Federal Register on Wednesday.
Details: The first change to be proposed by Commerce and Interior agencies would expand the definition of what is considered habitat for listed species to include areas where the species are not currently found but had previously lived in and would need to expand into if their numbers increase (Reg 1018-BD84). The second proposal would roll back the Trump administration’s rule (Reg. 1018-BE69) that economic data be used as a factor in deciding whether to protect a species’ habitat.
“Upon reconsideration of the final rule’s discussion of the extent to which areas that may need some degree of restoration can be considered ‘habitat’ for a species, we find that the definition and the preamble of the final rule inappropriately constrain the [the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service]’ ability to designate areas that meet the definition of ‘critical habitat’ under the Act,” regulators wrote in the proposal.
Background: The Biden administration in June had pledged to reverse the rules that the Trump administration put into effect in its final days.
Together, the two proposals would remove the changes that most concerned environmental groups, who had criticized the Trump-era changes for making it too easy for industry to expand into areas necessary to revive protected species. Building developers, oil companies and agriculture firms had sought the changes, saying that the ESA procedure made it too easy to exclude land from development and too difficult to remove species and their habitat from federal protection.
“We’re relieved that the Biden administration has taken this important step toward restoring critical protections for imperiled species,” said Noah Greenwald, endangered species director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “There’s just no way to save animals and plants from extinction without safeguarding the places they need to live.”
The oil industry was already engaging in conservation actions, the American Petroleum Institute said in response to the proposed changes.
"ESA regulations should ensure that decisions on the determination of critical habitats are based on science and objective data and coordinated with appropriate stakeholders," API senior policy adviser Amy Emmert said in a statement. "We will continue to support efforts to advance habitat protection and environmental stewardship while ensuring access to the safe and responsible development of American energy.”
What’s next: The agencies will take public comment for 30 days after the proposal is published in the Federal Register.
