The Endangered Species ACT: A Primer

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) protects species identified as endangered or threatened with extinction and attempts to protect the habitat on which they depend. It is administered primarily by the Fish and Wildlife Service and also by the National Marine Fisheries Service for certain marine and anadromous species. Dwindling species are listed as either endangered or threatened according to assessments of the risk of their extinction. Once a species is listed, legal tools are available to aid its recovery and to protect its habitat. The ESA can become the visible focal point for underlying situations involving the allocation of scarce or diminishing lands or resources, especially in instances where societal values may be changing, such as for the forests of the Pacific Northwest, the waters in the Klamath River Basin, or the polar environment. This report discusses the major provisions of the ESA, both domestic and international, and also discusses some of the background issues, such as extinction in general, and the effectiveness of the statute.