Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Removal of Northeastern Bulrush From the List of Endangered and Threatened Plants
Key claim: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is removing the northeastern bulrush (Scirpus ancistrochaetus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants because threats to the species have been sufficiently eliminated or reduced that it no longer qualifies as endangered or threatened under the ESA.
Abstract
(Rule · Interior Department, Fish and Wildlife Service) We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are removing the northeastern bulrush (Scirpus ancistrochaetus) from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Plants. Our review of the best scientific and commercial data available indicates that the threats to the northeastern bulrush have been eliminated or reduced to the point that the species no longer meets the definition of an endangered or threatened species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). Accordingly, the prohibitions and conservation measures provided by the Act, particularly through sections 7 and 9, will no longer apply to the northeastern bulrush.
Why this matters
ESA delistings alter the federal permitting and consultation landscape on public and private lands where the species occurs, removing Section 7 consultation and Section 9 take prohibitions and potentially easing project review for infrastructure, forestry, and water activities in the northeastern bulrush’s range. The action also sets a recovery precedent that agencies and litigants cite in future listing and delisting debates over how much threat abatement suffices for removal.