The Endangered Species Act of 1973: Origins, Contents, and Current State

Introduction

Over the course of the last 450 million years, five major extinction events have been identified. But today, most environmental scientists agree that we are witnessing an anthropogenic sixth mass extinction. With extinction rates estimated at 100 to 1,000 times higher than the background rate of extinction (2 species per year), provisions to protect critically endangered species are paramount (Bradford). The Endangered Species Act (ESA), signed into law by the Nixon administration in 1973, set in stone a roadmap for the conservation of a multitude of threatened and endangered plant and animal species and the habitats that they are indigenous to. Since the time of its effect, this piece of legislation has been touted for its detailed and multi-faceted tenets. But the ESA was not the first of its kind.

History

Movements for wildlife conservation in the United States began to take form in the early twentieth century when it became apparent to many that several species with large population footholds in the country were in visible decline. One acute instance was the American bison, which thrived in the Great Plains region prior to 1870 (“Endangered Species Act”). Over the last three decades of the 1800s, the American Bison had decreased in number from tens of millions to as low as 541 individuals (“Endangered Species Act”). Similarly, the extinction of the passenger pigeon set conservationists ablaze. To offset these concerns, the Lacey Act was passed in 1900 that was the first to regulate commercial animal markets and prohibited the selling of illegally killed species. President Theodore Roosevelt created the first National Wildlife Refuge at Pelican Island, Florida, in 1903 (“ESA Overview”). 

However, the decline of species, particularly avian species, continued. During the twentieth century, the bald eagle and the whooping crane began to receive widespread coverage as unregulated hunting and habitat loss ravaged its population. By the 1960s, they had almost completely disappeared from their native breeding range in the American Midwest. To address the species’ plight, Congress passed the Endangered Species Preservation Act in 1966. The law authorized the Secretary of the Interior to make a list of endangered domestic species and an annual budget of $23 million was allotted to purchase the necessary acreage to protect these listed species (Friedman). It also directed federal land agencies to preserve habitat on their lands “insofar as is practicable and consistent with their primary purpose.” Yet again, however, other agencies were simply encouraged, but not required, to protect species.

So what exactly made the Endangered Species act so monumental? 

First, it was actually a 1969 expansion of the Endangered Species Preservation Act that provided a template for the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (“ESA Overview”). The use of the term “based on the best scientific and commercial data.” in the 1969 expansion provided the ESA a standard to completely revamp the design of the Secretary of Interior’s endangered species list (Bradford). Second, the inclusion of the Commerce Department’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) in addition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the latter of which was integral to the ESPA, made administration of the act significantly easier and instituted a larger sphere of influence for the Act. Third, the structure of the act, which is 17 sections, is written such that it can be readily implemented:

• Listing. The ESA made petitions or proposals by public or private agencies to list a species as “threatened” or “endangered” readily available and would be accepted. When proposing a species that must be added to the list, a “critical habitat”– specific areas with the physical and biological features essential for the species’ conservation– must be included (“Summary of ESA”).

• Recovery Plan. After listing is accepted and finalized, the development of a plan that spells out the research and management actions can also be proposed.

• Consultation. This third tenet ensures that agency actions do not jeopardize the continued existence of these species or adversely modify or destroy their critical habitat. In addition, strict statutory prohibitions are also imposed.

• Recovery. The ultimate goal of the ESA is to “recover” species to the point they no longer require the Act’s protections and can be delisted.

Recent Events Concerning the ESA

In the last two years, the current administration has made changes to the ESA that have added economic considerations to whether a species is considered “threatened” or “endangered”. In July 2019, private construction initiatives and protection of habitats for species that were merely “threatened” were loosened, particularly near the Big Cypress National Reserve in Florida. These changes came just months after the IPBES released its Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, which only continued to support widespread belief of a sixth mass extinction among the scientific community (Friedman).

Although the Endangered Species Act of 1973 has pioneered modern wildlife conservation, recent changes to its composition during the current administration have served to hinder its ability to support and eliminate the number of species under duress. In order for this Act to continue its efficacy, tenets of the Act must be strengthened. Despite its goal of recovering species so they are no longer listed, this has rarely happened, and this Act will continue to have its critics as long as stricter assurances are not introduced.