Conservation groups sue to overturn rescission of blanket 4(d) rule for threatened species

BUTTE, Mont. — Conservation groups represented by Earthjustice sued on Wednesday to overturn a Trump administration rule that rescinded the blanket 4(d) rule, under which species listed as threatened automatically received the same protections as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The plaintiffs are the Sierra Club, WildEarth Guardians, National Parks Conservation Association, Humane World for Animals, Conservation Council for Hawai‘i and Save the Manatee Club. They argue that federal officials ran afoul of the ESA when they issued the rule. According to Earthjustice, the rule requires officials to write a different conservation plan for every species added to the threatened list. Earthjustice said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has a backlog of 400 species awaiting consideration for listing and has seen staff cuts affecting at least 500 biologists.

"When federal agencies issue rules, they must explain how their choices relate to facts on the ground. That didn’t happen here," Earthjustice Attorney Clay Samford said. Earthjustice said Florida manatees are one example of a species vulnerable to loss of protections under the rule change.