00:01The Trump administration has issued a sweeping new directive that could see the unintentional
00:06killing of protected wildlife no longer treated as unlawful.
00:11A directive sent to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees this week
00:15says imperiled animals or plants must be intentionally targeted for their killing
00:20to be considered illegal under the Endangered Species Act.
00:24The change would allow timber companies to log forests in the Pacific Northwest,
00:28even if they knew that doing so could kill endangered birds nesting in the trees,
00:33or for developers to build a dam knowing it would kill salmon.
00:36The Endangered Species Act is credited with bringing back iconic animals,
00:41including the bald eagle, American alligator, and California condor from the brink of extinction.
00:48Environmentalists warn the recent moves, if allowed to stand,
00:51will speed extinctions by letting protected species be killed and opening the door to habitat destruction.
00:58The Endangered Species Act
00:58The Endangered Species Act
00:58The Endangered Species Act
00:59The Endangered Species Act
00:59The Endangered Species Act
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