by Matthew Rephen, Staff, Fordham Environmental Law Review Journal

On October 29th, federal officials announced that gray wolves would no longer be protected by the Endangered Species Act. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt stated: “After more than 45 years as a listed species, the gray wolf has exceeded all conservation goals for recovery.” The rule was published on November 3rd, and will come into effect 60 days later.

At its nadir when the Endangered Species Act was passed in 1973, the grey wolf population was at about 1,000 in the lower 48 states, and primarily inhabited a small portion of Minnesota. Today, there are about 6,000 gray wolves, and their range has extended to the western Great Lakes and Northern Rocky Mountains.

The decision to remove the gray wolf from ESA protection has been met with plenty of criticism. Although the gray wolf population is no longer at extinction-level numbers, some researchers believe its lack of genetic diversity renders it vulnerable to environmental changes — primarily climate change. In addition, a larger wolf population will reduce grazing by elk and deer, which will lead to greater amounts of valuable flora. On the other hand, farmers worry about loss of livestock, and hunters worry about loss of deer. Conservationists argue that farmers can take greater precautions to protect their livestock, and removal from ESA protection will allow farmers to needlessly kill wolves that they deem threatening. However, those who defend the decision to remove gray wolves from protection believe that the government should “focus its resources on hundreds of species that are far more imperiled.”

Clearly, there is a conflict over the purpose of the Endangered Species Act: Should the government only protect species that face imminent extinction, or should the government protect species to the extent that it maximizes environmental health? Whatever the case, Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity, leading conservation organizations, are prepared to take the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to court over this. Gray wolves have withstood attempts to remove their protected status in the past. In 2017,  the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. rejected a 2011 decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to strip gray wolves of their protection. Time will tell if courts step in to protect gray wolves again.