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This news story originally provided by The Progress Report March 27, 2007 3/27 BUSH ADMINISTRATION MOVES TO 'GUT' THE ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT: In what is described as a "no-holds-barred end run around one of America's most popular environmental protections," the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is "maneuvering to fundamentally weaken" the Endangered Species Act, according to documents obtained by Salon.com. The strategy would "limit the number of species that can be protected and curtail the acres of wildlife habitat to be preserved." As Salon reports, many in the FWS feel the proposed changes are "not based on 'defensible science.'" Such reports come just months after the Washington Post reported last fall that senior political appointees in the Department of the Interior had ignored or rejected the advice of government scientists at the "behest of landowners or industry." These complaints were confirmed in a survey conducted by the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility which found that "nearly half" of FWS employees that work with endangered species reported "being directed by their superiors to ignore scientific evidence that would result in recommendations for the protection of species." Under the leadership of President George W. Bush and Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, a long-time critic of the Endangered Species Act, the FWS has declared only 57 species endangered since 2000. In contrast, Bill Clinton listed 512 species endangered in his 8-year term, and George H. W. Bush listed 234 species as endangered in his 4-year term. As one FWS employee stated, "I have 20 years of federal service in this and this is the worst it has ever been."
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