For Release: Thursday, April 30, 2009
New York Applauds Obama Administration for Revoking Rule That Would Further Threaten Endangered Species Protections
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis today applauded the U.S. Departments of Commerce and Interior for their decision to reverse a rule that would have severely compromised the protection of endangered and threatened species in New York and nationwide. The rule put into place by the outgoing Bush Administration was reversed this week by the Obama Administration and would have eliminated the requirement that federal agencies consult with wildlife biologists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service before undertaking, funding, or approving projects that may impact endangered species.
Commissioner Grannis said: "The rule change put forth in the waning hours of the Bush Administration would have - yet again - put politics ahead of science by reducing the amount of scrutiny given to actions affecting protected species. By reinstating the mandatory reviews of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), President Barack Obama is demonstrating his strong commitment to the protection of our most rare natural resources. New York is committed to helping restore endangered and threatened species populations, and we must remain vigilant to keep the necessary protections in place that will help us address existing and future challenges."
In the last days of 2008, the Bush Administration promulgated a rule that removed the USFWS and NMFS scientists from review of proposed actions involving federal agencies that could affect endangered and threatened species. In January 2009, New York and eight other states sued the federal government seeking to overturn the rule on the ground that it violated the requirement in the Endangered Species Act that federal agencies consult with USFWS and NMFS biologists on actions affecting protected species. The elimination of the consultation requirement would have left key decisions affecting endangered and threatened species in the hands of project proponents lacking the biological expertise to adequately assess impacts to such species. In March 2009, President Obama directed the Department of Commerce and the Department of Interior to reconsider the rule change, and earlier this week, the federal government announced that the rule would be revoked.
Currently 33 species that are listed as endangered or threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act reside wholly or partially in New York and its navigable waters, including its coastal waters. Species on the list include the piping plover, roseate tern, shortnose sturgeon, right whale and green sea turtles, which migrate outside of New York's jurisdiction and beyond the jurisdiction of state protections.
