43 Slips One Past

President Obama put an administrative hold on the Charlatan's midnight ink pending an administrative review of new regulations by his appointees.  But one important change that weakened the Endangered Species Act, was made final before Obama took office.  Bush 43 made sure that the change which eliminates the requirement for consultation with federal experts before federal projects affecting habitat are approved, was made final by rounding up 15 experts in Washington in October to review 250,000 written public comments in just 32 hours. The consultation process had been in place for 35 years, but was viewed as bureaucratic red tape by environmental protection critics.  The rule changes also prohibit federal agencies from considering a project's effect on endangered species and their habitats by increased global warming.  Obama has said he would work to reverse the changes.  Just one more item on his to do list.