{"id":20606,"date":"2025-04-29T16:14:32","date_gmt":"2025-04-29T16:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/?p=20606"},"modified":"2025-05-27T14:28:49","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T14:28:49","slug":"esa-action-alert-comment-on-proposed-rescission-of-the-endangered-species-acts-definition-of-harm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/esa.org\/esablog\/2025\/04\/29\/esa-action-alert-comment-on-proposed-rescission-of-the-endangered-species-acts-definition-of-harm\/","title":{"rendered":"ESA Action Alert: Comment on proposed rescission of the Endangered Species Act’s definition of “harm”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Earlier this month, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed a new rule<\/a> that could limit the scope of Endangered Species Act protections. The agencies are accepting public comments on the proposed rule change until May 19, 2025.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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See the Federal Register notice here<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Background:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Currently, the Endangered Species Act prohibits certain actions that \u201charass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect\u201d threatened and endangered organisms. Until now, \u201charm\u201d was understood to include actions that significantly impact an organism\u2019s habitat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the new proposed rule change would rescind the regulatory definition of \u201charm,\u201d limiting the Act\u2019s prohibitions to actions that directly injure or kill listed species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What you can do:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

All ecologists have the opportunity to share their expertise and comment on the proposed rule by May 19, 2025<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Comment instructions from the Federal Register notice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n