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| lesser prairie chicken |
As part of his effort to maximize extraction of remaining natural resource in order to "make 'Merica great again" the Trump regime has failed to make decisions for protecting 57 species, or failed to designate critical habitat for 21 more under a seven year work plan developed under the Obama government. In order to make his pro-extinction bias clear, Hair Further nominated a former Monsanto--the maker of the infamously pervasive and toxic pesticide
Roundup--head the Fish & Wildlife Service, the lead agency in administering the Endangered Species Act. Auerila Skipwith has been employed by the Department of Interior since 2017, but has no education or training credentials in fishery or wildlife management. Under law an appointee must, “by reason of scientific education and experience, knowledgeable in the principles of fisheries and wildlife management.”
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| Hermes copper butterfly |
Notably, the failure to act has left iconic species like the wolverine with critical habitat in which to survive the onslaught of global warming that is melting their high altitude homes where they raise their offspring. The work plan addressed the backlog of 500 species awaiting protection decisions.
[photos] The agency only managed to make 18 decisions in 2018 resulting in protection for only 8 species. Another six were denied protection, one of which has gone extinct. Delays in regulatory action have real-world consequences. Since the Act was passed in 1973, 46 species have left the Earth forever. Under previous Democratic administrations, 37 species a year were protected under Clinton, and 64 per year under Obama. So far Hair Further has protected a paltry 14. The extinction train just keeps on rolling.
