According to the Public Lands Council (PLC) and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), the Center for Biological Diversity along with other radical environmental groups threatened to sue the Department of Interior and Fish and Wildlife Service to force action on 417 proposed listings under the Endangered Species Act, all stemming from a massive lawsuit settlement brokered behind closed doors and without stakeholders at the table.

Ethan Lane, Executive Director of the PLC and NCBA Federal Lands, said the behavior of these groups has hampered species recovery by placing arbitrary listing-decision deadlines that leave no time for sound research and science-based decisions.

“This is precisely why the Endangered Species Act is broken,” said Lane. “Groups like the Center for Biological Diversity are attempting to force their agenda on FWS through litigation abuse. Substantive ESA reform is needed now to allow FWS the autonomy necessary to prioritize species conservation according to need, rather than political agenda.”

During the nearly 40 years since the ESA was passed, the Act has a recovery rate of less than two percent and has over 2,000 domestic species listed.

“Attention should be placed on creating real recovery goals and delisting species when they are no longer considered endangered, rather than overwhelming the agency with paperwork,” said Lane.