Endangered Species Act 2009

March 4, 2009 12:36 AM

Endangered Species Act Protections Restored by President Obama. Previous regulation made it easier to start projects without consulting scientists.
posted by Smaaz (17 comments total)

That's some good news.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 12:39 AM on March 4, 2009

YA RLY
posted by Poolio at 12:47 AM on March 4, 2009

O BMA
posted by Mikey-San at 1:18 AM on March 4, 2009

Hooray! A victory for reason.

But what about the rest of Bush's "New Environmentalism?" The third link mentions a number of changes the previous administration made to the Endangered Species Act. Hopefully they will be rolled back as well.
posted by Kevin Street at 2:27 AM on March 4, 2009

WAI!
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 2:30 AM on March 4, 2009

damn!

*puts down whooping crane sandwich*
posted by orme at 4:15 AM on March 4, 2009 [4 favorites]

*puts down whooping crane sandwich*

Try some of this Panda Express.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:31 AM on March 4, 2009 [2 favorites]

If Obama does nothing but reverse the last eight years of executive decisions that Bush made, he'll be the best President of my lifetime. Just making the federal agencies like the EPA do the mission that they were created to do, instead of doing their best to subvert that mission will go a long way toward healing the country. Imagine having the EPA actually protect the environment, the Department of Labor actually helping workers, the FDA actually regulating Food and Drugs, etc.
posted by octothorpe at 4:40 AM on March 4, 2009 [9 favorites]

Imagine having the EPA actually protect the environment, the Department of Labor actually helping workers, the FDA actually regulating Food and Drugs, etc.

Crazy talk. Everybody knows government doesn't work.
posted by Devils Rancher at 6:02 AM on March 4, 2009

It's interesting that the Republican response to the reversal of these policies is that it will slow the release of stimulus funds while environmental impact is examined. Are we in such a hurry to recover our economy that we would risk destroying our environment?
posted by birdwatcher at 6:34 AM on March 4, 2009 [1 favorite]

My bet: in one of life's ironies, the first applicant for protection under the new legislation will be that little understood, almost mythical creature: Rush Limbaugh's credibility.
posted by MuffinMan at 6:51 AM on March 4, 2009

It's interesting that the Republican response to the reversal of these policies is that it will slow the release of stimulus funds while environmental impact is examined.

You mean the stimulus funds they voted against, in the first place? That's rich.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:25 AM on March 4, 2009

As the sole representative of a particulare species, I applaud this.

Has sudden revelation as to why she can't find a suitable mate.
posted by orange swan at 10:01 AM on March 4, 2009 [2 favorites]

Let us celebrate this good news with a traditional bear fish dance.
posted by homunculus at 12:03 PM on March 4, 2009

good for obama!
posted by macadangdigety at 1:16 PM on March 4, 2009

What's that on the horizon? Is that? Could it be? Sanity returning?
posted by chance at 1:25 PM on March 4, 2009

One of my favorite things* about the EPA, Interior Dept, and USFWS service during the Bush years:

MacDonald, a deputy assistant interior secretary, created her own version of the federal biologists' report on the sage grouse, complete with what the Times called "flashes of her strong property-rights background, and her deference to industry views." Her version of the report eliminated many of the references to the scientifically based 600-page conservation assessment on the sage grouse. She apparently doesn't agree that there were ever millions of sage grouse, claiming that this is "simply a fairy tale, constructed out of whole cloth." And who says they'll only eat sagebrush? "They will eat other stuff if it is available," she opined, without offering any evidence. The Times says that the grouse's seasonal dependence on sagebrush is "uncontested among biologists." link

*By favorite, I mean most likely to make me pull my hair out.

I'm not going to miss the Bush years.
posted by rtha at 3:29 PM on March 4, 2009 [1 favorite]