Rebuilding the Ark New Perspectives on Endangered Species Act Reform

by Adler, Jonathan; Adler, Jonathan H.; Colburn, Jamison E.; Dana, David A.; Alessi, Michael De; Huffman, James L.; Mannix, Brian F.; Nash, Jonathan Remy; Ruhl, J. B.; Wilkins, R Neal

• ISBN13: 9780844743912
• ISBN10: 0844743917
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-06-16
• Publisher: AEI PRESS

Summary

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) may be the most powerful environmental law in the United States. Enacted in 1973, the ESA prohibits any actions that may cause harm to endangered plants and animals or the ecosystems upon which they depend. But although more than 1,200 species are protected under the Act, most remain in peril. The ESA may have saved some species from the brink of extinction, but there is little evidence it is working as intended to recover endangered and threatened species. In some cases, the Act's extensive regulatory requirements may actually discourage conservation efforts.In Rebuilding the Ark: New Perspectives on Endangered Species Act Reform, Jonathan H. Adler leads a group of environmental law experts in evaluating the ESA's successes and failures and exploring multiple avenues for reform. The authors examine methods for incentivizing conservation on private land and water, for revising and standardizing the ESA's regulatory framework, and for increasing transparency, accountability, and public participation in the Fish and Wildlife Service and other conservation agencies. Rebuilding the Ark also considers how the Act should be reformed to address the threat of climate change, and how ESA reform in the United States may affect species conservation overseas.The Endangered Species Act has not been altered for over twenty-five years. Debates over ESA reform are often contentious and hampered by partisan infighting and pressure from interest groups. But reform is crucial if we are to achieve the ESA's ambitious goals and conserve the world's endangered plants and animals. Rebuilding the Ark is a valuable resource for policymakers, conservationists, business owners, and concerned citizens alike.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. viii
Introduction: Rebuilding the Ark	p. 1
Notes	p. 5
The Leaky Ark: The Failure of Endangered Species Regulation on Private Land	p. 6
The Endangered Species Act	p. 7
Assessing the ESAÆs Performance	p. 9
The Private Land Problem	p. 14
Ending Anti-Conservation Incentives	p. 18
Endangered Science	p. 19
Foundational Reforms	p. 23
Notes	p. 24
Reforming Section 10 and the Habitat Conservation Program	p. 32
HCP Programs: A Brief History of Administrative Regulations and Guidance	p. 36
Is Stakeholder Participation the Answer?	p. 41
What Congress Can and Should Do	p. 43
Scientific Advisory Board Review	p. 44
Public-Private Insurance and Time Limits on HCPs	p. 47
Conservation Banking	p. 48
Conclusion	p. 50
Notes	p. 52
Improving the ESA's Performance on Private Land	p. 56
Private Lands and the ESA: Uncertainty and Fear	p. 57
Addressing Landowners' Concerns: Habitat Conservation Plans and Compensation	p. 61
Addressing Landowners' Concerns: New Incentives	p. 63
Lessons for Reform	p. 73
Notes	p. 77
Permits, Property, and Planning in the Twenty-First Century: Habitat as Survival and Beyond	p. 81
Statutory Evolution: From Categorical to Cost-Driven in Two Decades	p. 83
Results-Based Regulation, Information Triage, and Owner Autonomy	p. 91
Permits into Property?	p. 94
The Intermixed Landscape	p. 96
Conclusion	p. 101
Notes	p. 103
Mark to Ecosystem Service Market: Protecting Ecosystems through Revaluing Conservation Easements	p. 117
The ESA and Its Problematic Regulation of Private Land	p. 118
The Promise of Conservation Easements	p. 121
Increasing the Power of Conservation Easements to Preserve Habitats and Ecosystems	p. 123
Conclusion	p. 129
Notes	p. 130
Protecting Species through the Protection of Water Rights	p. 136
State Water Law and the ESA	p. 139
Species Protection versus Water Rights	p. 141
Taking Property versus Taking Species	p. 144
Avoiding the Takings Clause	p. 148
Taking Water Rights by Other Means	p. 151
Shifting the Focus to Incentives for Species Protection	p. 153
Property Rights, Markets, and Species Protection	p. 155
Conclusion	p. 158
Notes	p. 160
Dumb Queues and Not-So-Bright Lines: The Use and Abuse of Science in the Endangered Species Act	p. 164
Hard Lessons at the EPA	p. 165
Clean Air, Endangered Species, and Climate	p. 169
What's the Problem?	p. 171
Directions for Reform	p. 174
Notes	p. 177
Pit Bulls Can't Fly: Adapting the Endangered Species Act to the Reality of Climate Change	p. 179
Climate Change and the ESA	p. 180
Asking Too Much of the ESA	p. 185
Adapting the ESA for the Future	p. 191
Conclusion	p. 196
Notes	p. 197
Protecting Endangered Species at Home and Abroad: The International Conservation Effects of the Endangered Species Act and Its Relationship to CITES	p. 201
The History of CITES	p. 202
Foreign Species on the Federal Endangered Species List	p. 203
Limits to the Effectiveness of CITES	p. 208
Measuring Success	p. 210
Lessons Learned and the Convention on Biological Diversity	p. 216
Conclusions and Suggested ESA Reforms	p. 217
Notes	p. 219
Index	p. 225
About the Authors	p. 243
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