Trump reverses decades of environmental protection of endangered species

CNN - The Trump administration reversed decades of longstanding environmental law protecting endangered species on Friday, opening up sensitive habitats of those protected species to drilling, mining, farming and real estate development.

The change, finalized by the Interior and Commerce Departments, redefines what constitutes “harm” to endangered species and habitats under the 1973 Endangered Species Act. The longstanding law had long prohibited “habitat modification or degradation” because it could harm or kill endangered animals by impacting their ability to breed and find food or shelter. That definition of harm was upheld by the US Supreme Court in a 1995 ruling.

The Trump administration called the previous definition of harm “outdated” in a statement released Friday, arguing its move “returns the interpretation of the ESA back to its actual text and original intent, which will end years of federal overreach.”

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement that the law’s approach had “turned routine activity into a regulatory trap, drove up costs that impacted people’s lives, and expanded federal authority beyond what Congress intended.”