U.S. lists polar bear as threatened species
BEIJING, May 16 (Xinhuanet)-- The U.S. govermentdeclared the polar bear a threatened species because of the loss of Arctic sea ice butcautioned the decision should not be viewed as a path to address global warming.
Polar bear twin cubs are seen in
Vienna's Schoenbrunn zoo March 4, 2008. The male cubs were born on
November 30, 2007, and left their cave for the first time today.
(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
"This listing will not stop global climate change or prevent any sea ice from melting," Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said while announcing the decision Wednesday.
The Endangered Species Act should not be "abused to make
global warming policies," he said.
Kassie Siegel, a lawyer with the Center for Biological
Diversity, said the group does not accept Kempthorne's view.
The act requires federal agencies to take steps to reduce
or eliminate those impacts on threatened species, she said. "There is no
exemption for greenhouse gas emissions."
If the government fails to address global warming, "we can
and will go to court to enforce the law," she said.
The decision comes three years after environmental groups
petitioned to have the polar bear listed under the Endangered Species Act.
The listing of "threatened" means a species is at risk of
becoming endangered within the foreseeable future. A species is listed as
"endangered" when it is at risk of becoming extinct, according to the act.
"Although the population of polar bears has grown from
10,000 in the 1960s to 25,000 today, our scientists tell me that polar bears
could become an endangered species in the next 30 years," Kempthorne said.
In an interview, Kempthorne said the next step is for the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which administers the act, to designate
"critical habitat" for the polar bear, which will likely happen under the next
administration. After that, a recovery plan will be developed, he said, adding
that he could not provide specifics.
He said the decision to list the animals as threatened was
"forced" by science and the Endangered Species Act, which he called
"inflexible."
The Department of Interior will issue a rule stating that
anything allowed under the Marine Mammals Protection Act, including arctic oil
and gas production and exploration, will be allowed under the new listing. The
only exception: polar bear hides collected in sport hunts in Canada can no
longer be imported into the United States.
Reed Hopper, an attorney with the Pacific Legal
Foundation, which defends property rights, said the decision "is exactly what
the environmentalists have been looking for."
"It opened the door to them to create a hook to bring
legal challenges to virtually any carbon-emitting activities," including
livestock and energy production, and manufacturing, he said.
Kempthorne said the decision precludes such an argument.
"It's not going to be up to the agency," Hopper said. "It's going to be up to
the courts."
(Agencies)