Who decides what survives? Pressures on the federal Endangered Species Act continue – but states aren’t prepared to pick up the pieces.
For over 50 years, the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has been the nation’s most effective defense against extinction, preventing the loss of 99 percent of listed species. Without these federal safeguards, iconic American wildlife, including the bald eagle, grizzly bear, humpback whale, and peregrine falcon might exist only in memory. Yet, the ESA has increasingly...