The Trump administration has finalized a rule that changes how agencies enforce the Endangered Species Act and eliminates a key protection for imperiled wildlife against logging, oil drilling, and other activities.

Changes to the Endangered Species Act

The administration narrowed the definition of “harm” under the landmark law — a change with broad implications. For decades, the government defined harm broadly to include encroachments on places with threatened and endangered animals. The change announced would allow oil and gas drilling, mining, logging, and other development on critical wildlife habitats so long as the animals themselves aren’t killed or injured.

Environmentalists warned the move could cause some species to go extinct by opening the door to habitat destruction. Industry representatives and their Republican allies have long argued the landmark 1973 environmental law is wielded too broadly, to the detriment of economic growth.

Administration officials said they were returning the law to its original intent, following a 2024 Supreme Court decision that limited the authority of federal agencies to interpret environmental statutes passed by Congress. They described the government’s prior definition of harm as an intrusion on private property rights.

The Endangered Species Act is credited with bringing back iconic animals — including the bald eagle, American alligator, and California condor — from the brink of extinction.

Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.