{"id":42082,"date":"2026-07-20T00:01:57","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T04:01:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/?p=42082"},"modified":"2026-07-18T22:23:15","modified_gmt":"2026-07-19T02:23:15","slug":"trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Rule Undercuts Protection of Endangered Species as Biodiversity Decline Escalates at Historic Rate"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<p>(<em>Beyond Pesticides<\/em>, July 20, 2026) Despite the threat of biodiversity collapse on the horizon, the Trump administration last week dramatically weakened the <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fws.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/documents\/endangered-species-act-accessible.pdf\">Endangered Species Act <\/a><\/em>(ESA) by redefining the word \u201charm\u201d\u2014one of the key mitigation measures in slowing the spiraling decline of species diversity, necessary to sustain life. On July 14, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively \u201cthe Services\u201d)\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/public-inspection.federalregister.gov\/2026-14195.pdf\">changed their regulations<\/a> with the express intention of eliminating protection from actions that impair habitat of wildlife. A nationwide action is asking <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/secure.everyaction.com\/Gr2iQb1spUyt4EBQREuMVg2##anchor\">Congress to restore\u00a0<em>Endangered Species Act<\/em>\u00a0protections.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p>Scientific warning of biodiversity decline has been led by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). In <em><a href=\"https:\/\/files.ipbes.net\/ipbes-web-prod-public-files\/inline\/files\/ipbes_global_assessment_report_summary_for_policymakers.pdf\">The global assessment report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services<\/a>,<\/em> published in 2019, IPBES wrote:<\/p>\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><strong>&#8220;Human actions threaten more species with global extinction now than ever before. <br \/>\r\n<\/strong>An average of around 25 per cent of species in assessed animal and plant groups are threatened, suggesting that around 1 million species already face extinction, many within decades, unless action is taken to reduce the intensity of drivers of biodiversity loss. Without such action, there will be a further acceleration in the global rate of species extinction, which is already at least tens to hundreds of times higher than it has averaged over the past 10 million years.&#8221;<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<p>The Services&#8217; action is directly opposed to the purposes of ESA, \u201cto provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved, to provide a program for the conservation of such endangered species and threatened species, and to take such steps as may be appropriate to achieve the purposes of the treaties and conventions set forth in subsection (a) of this section.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>ESA prohibits taking any threatened or endangered species within the United States or the territorial sea of the United States. ESA defines taking: \u201cThe term \u201ctake\u201d means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.\u201d \u201cHarm\u201d is not defined in the statute but had been defined in the regulations as: &#8216;<em>Harm<\/em>\u00a0in the definition of &#8216;take&#8217; in the Act means an act which actually kills or injures wildlife. Such act may include significant habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills or injures wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns, including breeding, feeding or sheltering.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>By removing the definition of \u201charm\u201d in the regulations, the Trump administration allows actions to go forward that will degrade habitat to the extent that some species may have nowhere to live. Such habitat degradation may take many forms. Development, agriculture, and dredging have resulted in listing of the Streaked Horned Lark (<em>Eremophila alpestris strigata<\/em>) as a threatened species. Loss of mature and old growth forests to logging reduces nesting opportunities and provides for invasion of predatory species that could result in the Marbled Murrelet (<em>Brachyramphus marmoratus<\/em>), now listed as threatened, becoming endangered. Pesticide use harms the threatened\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/monarchjointventure.org\/monarch-biology\">Monarch butterflies<\/a>\u00a0(<em>Danaus Plexippus<\/em>)\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2024\/06\/seeds-coated-with-neonicotinoid-insecticides-again-identified-as-important-to-butterfly-decline\/\">directly through pest control<\/a>\u2014reactive insect control (sprayed insecticides) and prophylactic insect control (neonicotinoid-treated and Bt-genetically modified seeds), but also by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2015\/02\/monsantos-roundup-eradicates-milkweed-major-food-source-for-monarch-butterflies\/\">eliminating the sole source \u202fof food<\/a>\u00a0for developing Monarch caterpillars, milkweed.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>But the implications of the rescission go beyond habitat. As stated by Sandra Snodgrass and Amelia Yowell,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollandhart.com\/showpublication.aspx?Show=51383\">commenting<\/a>\u00a0for the law firm Holland and Hart, \u201cBy limiting &#8216;take&#8217; to affirmative acts directed immediately and intentionally against an animal or animals, the Services appear to be eliminating the need for incidental take coverage for virtually all proposed actions that will directly kill or injure ESA-listed species. Because, for instance, pipelines, transmission lines, mines, housing developments, highways, and timber sales, do not involve affirmative acts directed immediately and intentionally against animals, any death or injury caused by these projects\u2014such as through collision, crushing, or exposure to hazardous materials\u2014may not be deemed to be &#8216;take&#8217; under the final rule.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>As soon as the final rule was published, nine environmental organizations represented by\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/press\/2026\/lawsuit-seeks-to-protect-americas-wildlife-from-trump-administration\">Earthjustice<\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/earthjustice.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/earthjustice-esa-harm-complaint.pdf\">sued<\/a>\u00a0the Trump administration asking for declaratory and injunctive relief, asking that the court declare that the Services violated ESA, NEPA (<em>National Environmental Policy Act<\/em>), and the APA (<em>Administrative Procedure Act<\/em>) when they issued the rescission; vacate the rescission; reinstate the harm rules previously set forth at 50 C.F.R. \u00a7\u00a717.3 and 222.102; enjoin FWS and NMFS from applying the rescission and require them to apply, utilize, and follow the harm rules previously in force; and grant restraining orders and\/or preliminary and permanent injunctive relief to ensure that threatened and endangered species and their habitat do not suffer irreparable harm pending resolution of the suit. \u201cPreventing harm to wildlife by protecting where they live, eat, and sleep is the foundation of the\u00a0<em>Endangered Species Act<\/em>,\u201d said Earthjustice attorney Kristen Boyles. \u201cThe Trump administration repeal violates the core purpose of the statute and decades of legal precedent, including from the U.S. Supreme Court. Now more than ever, imperiled species from salmon to marbled murrelets to grizzly bears need habitat protection to survive and recover.\u201d<\/p>\r\n<p>While the courts consider this case, Congress must weigh in and make it clear that the Trump administration is violating the clear purpose of ESA.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>Those interested in taking action can <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/secure.everyaction.com\/Gr2iQb1spUyt4EBQREuMVg2##anchor\">Tell Congress to restore\u00a0<em>Endangered Species Act<\/em>\u00a0protections<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/secure.everyaction.com\/Gr2iQb1spUyt4EBQREuMVg2##anchor\"><em>.<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\r\n<p><strong>Letter to U.S. Congress<br \/>\r\n<\/strong>On July 14, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (\u201cthe Services\u201d) changed their regulations to rescind the definition of \u201charm\u201d under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). They did so with the express intention of eliminating protection from actions that impair the habitat of wildlife. This action is directly opposed to the purposes of ESA, \u201cto provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved, to provide a program for the conservation of such endangered species and threatened species, and to take such steps as may be appropriate to achieve the purposes of the treaties and conventions set forth in subsection (a) of this section.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>ESA prohibits taking any threatened or endangered species within the United States or the territorial sea of the United States. ESA defines taking: \u201cThe term \u201ctake\u201d means to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct.\u201d \u201cHarm\u201d is not defined in the statute but had been defined in the regulations as: &#8216;Harm in the definition of \u2018take\u2019 in the Act means an act which actually kills or injures wildlife. Such act may include significant habitat modification or degradation where it actually kills or injures wildlife by significantly impairing essential behavioral patterns, including breeding, feeding or sheltering.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>By removing the definition of \u201charm\u201d in the regulations, the Trump administration allows actions to go forward that will degrade habitat to the extent that some species may have nowhere to live. Such habitat degradation may take many forms. Development, agriculture, and dredging have resulted in listing of the Streaked Horned Lark (as a threatened species). Loss of mature and old growth forests to logging reduces nesting opportunities and provides for invasion of predatory species that could result in the Marbled Murrelet, now listed as threatened, becoming endangered. Pesticide use harms the threatened Monarch butterflies directly through pest control&#8211; reactive insect control (sprayed insecticides), and prophylactic insect control (neonicotinoid-treated and Bt-genetically modified seeds), but also by eliminating the sole source of food for developing Monarch caterpillars, milkweed.<\/p>\r\n<p>The implications of the rescission go beyond habitat. As stated by Sandra Snodgrass and Amelia Yowell of the law firm Holland and Hart, \u201cBy limiting \u2018take\u2019 to affirmative acts directed immediately and intentionally against an animal or animals, the Services appear to be eliminating the need for incidental take coverage for virtually all proposed actions that will directly kill or injure ESA-listed species. Because, for instance, pipelines, transmission lines, mines, housing developments, highways, and timber sales, do not involve affirmative acts directed immediately and intentionally against animals, any death or injury caused by these projects\u2014such as through collision, crushing, or exposure to hazardous materials\u2014may not be deemed to be \u2018take\u2019 under the final rule.\u201d<\/p>\r\n<p>As soon as the final rule was published, nine environmental organizations represented by Earthjustice sued the Trump administration asking for declaratory and injunctive relief, asking that the court undo the damage caused by the rescission. \u201cPreventing harm to wildlife by protecting where they live, eat, and sleep is the foundation of the Endangered Species Act,\u201d said Earthjustice attorney Kristen Boyles. \u201cThe Trump administration repeal violates the core purpose of the statute and decades of legal precedent, including from the U.S. Supreme Court. Now more than ever, imperiled species from salmon to marbled murrelets to grizzly bears need habitat protection to survive and recover.\u201d<\/p>\r\n<p>While the courts consider this case, I ask you to act to reinstate the definition of harm by including it in ESA.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n<p>Thank you.<\/p>\r\n<p><em>All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.<\/em><\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(Beyond Pesticides, July 20, 2026) Despite the threat of biodiversity collapse on the horizon, the Trump administration last week dramatically weakened the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by redefining the word \u201charm\u201d\u2014one of the key mitigation measures in slowing the spiraling decline of species diversity, necessary to sustain life. On July 14, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively \u201cthe Services\u201d)\u00a0changed their regulations with the express intention of eliminating protection from actions that impair habitat of wildlife. A nationwide action is asking Congress to restore\u00a0Endangered Species Act\u00a0protections. Scientific warning of biodiversity decline has been led by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). In The global assessment report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, published in 2019, IPBES wrote: &#8220;Human actions threaten more species with global extinction now than ever before. An average of around 25 per cent of species in assessed animal and plant groups are threatened, suggesting that around 1 million species already face extinction, many within decades, unless action is taken to reduce the intensity of drivers of biodiversity loss. Without such action, there will be a further acceleration in the global rate of species extinction, which is [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42098,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[408,1578,364,346,2655,276,1,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42082","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-department-of-interior","category-endangered-species-act-esa","category-fish-and-wildlife-service-fws","category-habitat-protection","category-national-marine-fisheries-service-nmfs","category-take-action","category-uncategorized","category-wildlifeenvironment"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Trump Rule Undercuts Protection of Endangered Species as Biodiversity Decline Escalates at Historic Rate - Beyond Pesticides Daily News Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump Rule Undercuts Protection of Endangered Species as Biodiversity Decline Escalates at Historic Rate - Beyond Pesticides Daily News Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"(Beyond Pesticides, July 20, 2026) Despite the threat of biodiversity collapse on the horizon, the Trump administration last week dramatically weakened the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by redefining the word \u201charm\u201d\u2014one of the key mitigation measures in slowing the spiraling decline of species diversity, necessary to sustain life. On July 14, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively \u201cthe Services\u201d)\u00a0changed their regulations with the express intention of eliminating protection from actions that impair habitat of wildlife. A nationwide action is asking Congress to restore\u00a0Endangered Species Act\u00a0protections. Scientific warning of biodiversity decline has been led by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). In The global assessment report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, published in 2019, IPBES wrote: &#8220;Human actions threaten more species with global extinction now than ever before. An average of around 25 per cent of species in assessed animal and plant groups are threatened, suggesting that around 1 million species already face extinction, many within decades, unless action is taken to reduce the intensity of drivers of biodiversity loss. Without such action, there will be a further acceleration in the global rate of species extinction, which is [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Beyond Pesticides Daily News Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/beyondpesticides\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/beyondpesticides\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-20T04:01:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Monarach.Butterfly.DN-7.20.26-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Beyond Pesticides\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ByondPesticides\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ByondPesticides\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Beyond Pesticides\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Beyond Pesticides\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/#\/schema\/person\/1b5c0a0981b549cc5b628770073031f4\"},\"headline\":\"Trump Rule Undercuts Protection of Endangered Species as Biodiversity Decline Escalates at Historic Rate\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-20T04:01:57+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\"},\"wordCount\":1503,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Monarach.Butterfly.DN-7.20.26-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":{\"0\":\"Department of Interior\",\"1\":\"Endangered Species Act (ESA)\",\"2\":\"Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)\",\"3\":\"Habitat Protection\",\"4\":\"National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)\",\"5\":\"Take Action\",\"7\":\"Wildlife\/Endangered Sp.\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2026\/07\/trump-rule-undercuts-protection-of-endangered-species-as-biodiversity-decline-escalates-at-historic-rate\/\",\"name\":\"Trump Rule Undercuts Protection of Endangered Species as Biodiversity Decline Escalates at Historic Rate - 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The founders, who established Beyond Pesticides (originally as National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides) as a nonprofit membership organization in 1981, felt that without the existence of such an organized, national network, local, state and national pesticide policy would become, under chemical industry pressure, increasingly unresponsive to public health and environmental concerns. Beyond Pesticides believes that people must have a voice in decisions that affect them directly. We believe decisions should not be made for us by chemical companies or by decision-makers who either do not have all of the facts or refuse to consider them. Learn more about our work, read A Year in Review\u20142021, our accomplishments are your victories! Beyond Pesticides seeks to protect healthy air, water, land, and food for ourselves and future generations. By forging ties with governments, nonprofits, and people who rely on these natural resources, we reduce the need for unnecessary pesticide use and protect public health and the environment. Beyond Pesticides provides hands-on services to the public and supports local action by: identifying and interpreting hazards; and, designing safe pest management programs. With the information provided by Beyond Pesticides, people may not only be able to make informed choices and adopt practices that protect themselves and their families from unnecessary exposure to pesticides, but they will be able to effect changes on community-wide pest management decisions and policies that govern pesticide use, such as pesticide uses in parks, schools, for community insect control and along roadsides. 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