Amanda Rodewald

Professor; Senior Director of Conservation Science, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Amanda Rodewald, senior director of the Center for Avian Population Studies at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, says this change follows similar patterns by the Trump Administration of weakening laws protecting animals.

Rodewald says: 

“Removing incidental or accidental harm to endangered species is similar to how the administration has weakened other laws, like the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The science shows that mortality or harm of endangered species, as with most species, is overwhelmingly unintentional. The most pervasive threat to species is loss or degradation of suitable habitat due to human activities, such as residential development, agriculture, invasive species, climate change, and pollution. Exceedingly few species are endangered due to deliberate persecution. 

 “Using birds as an example, the vast majority of the 3 billion birds lost – more than one of every four birds – since 1970, can be attributed to unintentional causes. The inclusion of incidental harm in our policies like ESA provides strong and well-demonstrated incentive to take proactive steps to avoid that harm. Removing that incentive has real consequences. 

“We know, for example, that industry is responsible for the annual loss of approximately 1 billion birds, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates, and almost none of that is intentional. It’s imperative to retain incidental harm provisions to ensure that industry and other groups are taking reasonable steps to avoid harming endangered species directly or indirectly through their activities.”