The Endangered Species Act

Endangered Species Endangered species is a broad issue, one that involves the habitats and environments where species reside and intermingle with one another. Some measures are being taken to help specific cases of endangerment, but the question I have is should the Endangered Species Act be strengthened. The universal problem cannot be fixed until us as humans protect the natural environments where endangered species live. The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the most popular and successful environmental laws that was ever enacted. As Americans we have committed to work jointly to protect and return those species that are mainly at risk of extinction. Humans have always been a part of nature, unfortunately the natural systems
we depend on are in jeopardy, and plants and animals everywhere are becoming extinct. In the U.S., hundreds of plant and animal species, including the eastern elk, the passenger pigeon, and the California grizzly bear, have become extinct since the time of the first European settlements. The bald eagle, grizzly bear, and the red-bellied cooter have all increased in population as a result of the federal programs. Scientists calculate approximately that 539 species have gone vanished in the United States in the past 200 years. The Endangered Species Act presents us with anticipation that we can not only slow these extinctions but also bring back our native wildlife. The ESA provides common sense and unbiased resolution for government agencies, landowners, and concerned citizens to care for and restore endangered species and their habitat. It is based on three key elements- listing species as threatened or endangered, designating habitat necessary for their continued existence and resurgence,
Species p. 3 and in the end restoring healthy populations of the species so they can be removed from the list. The security afforded by the ESA presently extends to over 1,259 species, and most of them have totally improved, partly recovered, had their habitat protected, or had their populations stabilized or amplified as a end result. The principal cause of endangerment is the damage of a species habitat, but other factors such as pollution, hunting, and natural changes add to the increasing number or endangered animals. Today, there are countless simple ways and organizations to decrease the number of endangered species. Natural changes in the habitats generally happen slowly over a long period of time, but humans speed up the process by interfering in things such as deforestation and hunting. If the environment and climate adjusts too rapidly, animals will not have sufficient time to adjust and therefore die. When talking about the causes of endangered species, it is imperative to recognize that individual species are not the only factors involved in this problem.
Endangerment is a extensive issue, one that involves the habitats and environments where species live and work together with one another. Although some actions are being taken to assist specific cases of endangerment, the universal dilemma cannot be solved until humans protect the natural environments where endangered species dwell. Back in the fall of 1973 Congress passed the Endangered Species Act, the point of which was to recognize the plants and animals in the most danger and come up with plans for saving them. The effort has almost certainly been as controversial as it has been successful (Institute of Advanced Studies 39). Of the more than 1,400 species designated as endangered, only 18 have recovered to the point where they've been taken off the list. Upon signing the
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Species Act on December 28, 1973, President Nixon stated Nothing is more priceless and more worthy of preservation than the rich array of animal life with which our country has been blessed (Environmental Protection Agency).
Rapid habitat devastation is the major cause that species become endangered. Natural changes normally occur at a sluggish rate, so the effects on individual species are typically slight, at least over the short term. When the rate of change is greatly speeded up, there may be no time for individual species to adapt to new conditions. The results can be devastating. This increase in the rate of habitat devastation is directly connected to the increase in human population. As more people require space for homes, farms, shopping centers and so on, there is less living space for species that cannot adapt to changing conditions. People also affect plant and animal habitats when they take wood, oil and other products from the land.
In today's society, it would not be difficult to persuade the typical U.S.
citizen that saving Earth's endangered species from extinction should be a national concern. Thanks to the press, over the years, a lot of people seem to have gained a general ethical and scientific understanding of the value of biological diversity. This biological diversity, or biodiversity, is a concept that emphasizes the fragile nature of the genetic and social interrelationships of the many varieties of plant and animal life that can be found in any given ecosystem (DiSilvestro, 1993). If one species vanishes, the entire ecosystem may be affected by the loss, in a possibly devastating chain reaction that current science does not presently have the ability to fully predict the outcome
of. Species p. 5 It can be complicated for individuals to be aware of the effects that humans have had on particular species. It is difficult to identify or predict human effects on individual species and habitats, particularly during a human lifetime. But it is quite evident that human activity has significantly contributed to species endangerment. For example, although tropical forests may look as though they are lush, they are in fact highly susceptible to devastation. This is due to the soils in which they grow are lacking nutrients. It may take centuries to re-grow a forest that was cut down by humans or devastated by fire, and many of the world's harshly threatened animals and plants live in these forests. If the present rate of forest loss continues, large quantities of plant and animal species will vanish. What is man without the beasts? If all the beasts were gone, man would die from great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts, also happens to man. All things are connected (Chief Sealth 1885).